Chapter Text
Don’t shoot the messenger .
Don’t shoot the messenger.
Don’t shoot the messenger.
Namjoon’s words echo in his mind.
Jeongguk leers at the omega and grunts dismissively. She may not be smart enough not to interrupt his early morning training but she is perceptive enough to take the cue and scram.
He wipes his sweat with the bandages wrapping his hands while he runs through all the possibilities that could have led up to this fiasco in his brain.
It’s well into September and the earth has cooled down on this side of the mountain, but his body temperature usually runs high, especially after training, so he decides against a tunic.
The chances of a pack member’s involvement in instigation are close to zero , he muses as he makes his way to the village center where he knows the rest of the pack has already assembled.
Could this be an enemy pack’s orchestration? Perhaps the Song pack .
Jeeongguk’s train of thought breaks when he smells his second-in-command’s ashy scent and hears the signature light padding of bare feet. “What do you know?” he asks wasting no time, not bothering to slow down, gaze still fixed on the cobblestoned path, knowing well Taehyung will soon fall into step with him.
The other alpha catches up quickly but chooses to ignore the question in favor of asking a few of his own, “Jeongguk-ah, how many times do we have to tell you not to talk to people without looking at them? It’s rude. Also, how come you are barefoot today?”
Jeongguk gives him a side glance and an arched eyebrow. “I asked,” he emphasizes slowly, “what do you know?”
Taehyung quickly realizes that it’s not the time and place to play around. “Not too much, Alpha. Only that he said no.”
Jeongguk’s steps halt as he turns to take a proper look at his best friend. While it’s been long established between them that friendship hours end as soon as the pack alpha’s morning routine does, Kim Taehyung has a knack for testing the boundaries of their relationship.
But the longer he studies his face, the more Jeongguk realizes that the Kim alpha is not joking.
In the shared beat of silence, a common thought floats through both the alpha’s minds – how could someone say no to Alpha Jeon Jeongguk? But the pack alpha’s agitation must be apparent, for no one dares to breach that part of the conversation.
They start walking again. “Well then tell me more. You always know more. More than the general public is supposed to.”
Taehyung flicks his hair in a show of arrogance, “I do, don’t I? But this time around the information I have gathered is not of much use to you, I’m afraid.”
Jeongguk furrows his brows, “Whatever do you mean?”
“The general knowledge is that he arrived a few nights ago and spent some time in Omega Kang’s place under the disguise of being a traveler who needed a place to rest for a couple of nights. He surveyed the pack and the village premises for a few days before finally making the request last evening.”
Jeongguk scowls, “And it was promptly rejected, which would be the natural course of decision for a request of such kind. Why has this become a huge matter requiring my attention then? Tell me more than what I already know!”
Taehyung hesitates for a moment but eventually relents, “The grapevine says that this omega intruder is particularly, err, fetching .”
Jeongguk clenches his jaw, running out of patience. “You are telling me that the pack welcomed an intruder and announced an assembly because an omega is easy on the eyes? What are we? A bunch of horny, middle-school humans ?” he spits with disgust.
Taehyung nervously rakes a hand through his hair, refusing to meet the pack alpha’s gaze. “Alpha, he’s not just easy on the eyes or even ordinarily pretty. His beauty is known to be unconventionally enchanting – his eyes, his lips, his waist, his hips, his very voice, and gait – he is the embodiment of elegance and beauty,” the alpha drawls dreamily.
“All I hear is that your rut is close. And that we have too many unmated wolves running around with their brains in their dicks.”
“Actually the women agree,” Taehyung interjects, “They find his, erm, thighs very alluring. And he is also very well endowed from the backside.”
Jeongguk frowns at that, peers down at his own legs, and then at the other alpha’s. Their thighs are well hidden under their loose, cotton pants although he knows from their regular training sessions how well built and endowed they are in their nether regions.
“Funny, how you mention that. I find it hard to imagine how the ladies managed to catch a glimpse of his assets.”
Taehyung chokes on his breath, running a hand through his hair again. “It’s not particularly difficult to catch a glimpse when he puts on a whole show.”
“Does he train in the common grounds or bathe in the lake?” Jeongguk’s curiosity is piqued.
“No, he– he wears shorts, Alpha. His clothes are different from ours. They’re more like the–”
“Like the humans from the city,” the pack alpha completes, curiosity fading quickly into disbelief. “Are you saying his thighs were bare?”
Taehyung nods furiously, “Completely, Alpha. It was an unbelievable sight – shameless, but a delightful one.”
Jeongguk slaps a hand on the back of his head. “And that brings me to my original question, Taehyung. What business does a city omega like that have making such a request in a pack like ours?”
“It’s actually a demand.”
Jeongguk clenches his jaw and turns towards his second-in-command with a sharp glare. He raises his hands placatively, “His words, not mine.”
Jeongguk’s nose flares in belligerence. No one has ever dared to make a demand to the pack alpha like that. Now a city wolf dares to publicly make a scene, an omega no less, one who lets strangers ogle his thighs .
The two alphas complete their trek from the training grounds near Jeongguk’s house to reach the main premise of the village. The commotion and confusion among the public feel palpable even at a distance from the village center – the venue for the announced assembly.
As the two alphas close in on the place of assembly, Jeongguk tries to make a quick assessment of public sentiment on this matter. Much to his shock, not many of his packmates seem to share his repulsion towards the omega intruder and his ridiculous request.
Most of the populace waiting for Alpha Jeongguk to arrive and address the assembly seem to be doing so with bated breaths, eager with anticipation to see what the outcome of a proposition so unprecedented would be. It’s probably the highest-voltage of drama that this pack has witnessed live for years.
The crowd parts as Jeongguk makes his way to the center where a wooden podium is built especially for the pack alpha and elders to make important announcements. Before he can spot his adversary, the alpha smells him.
Amidst the heavy scent of wet mud, lingering wafts of the neighboring forest, and the familiar cocktail of his pack’s scents, a wave of fresh Gardenia takes Jeongguk by surprise. It’s light and obviously floral, but what catches his alpha’s undivided attention is the creamy undertones of the scent, like fresh coconut. There’s also a zest of something spicy that he can’t put his finger on.
Crossed at the fact that he likes how this pack intruder smells like, especially being as critical as he is with scents in general, Jeongguk pushes through the final row of people crowding the podium.
And there he sees him – the infamous omega who dared to fool Jeongguk’s pack into taking him in, who made a ridiculous request to be considered for the pack’s head healer’s position, and who on being refused and asked to politely leave, dared to challenge the pack alpha’s decision, demanding that he be given a chance to prove himself.
One look at the man, and Jeongguk can’t help the gasp of shock that leaves his lips or the discountenance that seeps through his pores.
For he hasn’t yet been acquainted with a man so outrageously unabashed. For the first time in his life, pack alpha Jeon Jeongguk is at a loss for words.
The omega intruder is wearing shorts alright. His thighs are bare too, very much so. His blouse leaves little to the imagination. But these are all things that Jeongguk could have looked past in favor of having an unprejudiced negotiation.
Which, by the way, feels implausible right now. Because, forget bowing down to the pack alpha as a show of respect for his authority, the strange omega hasn’t even bothered to stand for him.
Instead, he’s comfortably balancing himself in a headstand on the podium, shamelessly disrespecting the significance of the platform, uncaring of how that upside-down position rides his clothes up, giving way to show more skin.
The omega is probably enjoying the attention that it draws – the humored glances to see a lunatic standing on his head in the middle of the village, the lustful, lingering stares on his supple skin, the fascinated eyes of the kids in training, marveling at a stunt they could only dream of performing.
Taehyung is saying something to calm him down, but his voice is long forgotten.
Oh, Jeongguk is livid, and how . He is about to part his lips and announce the banishment of the omega without any opportunity to negotiate when the omega beats him to it.
In this position, the alpha cannot easily determine the objective beauty of the omega’s features, but even upside down, when the intruder’s lips pucker up to blow a mocking whistle, Jeongguk has to stop and stare.
The whistle beckons a deafening silence to fall over the crowd. The Jeon pack watches in awe as the omega’s lips stretch into an alluring smirk and he gracefully lets his headstand melt into a cartwheel, pulling himself into a standing position.
“My, my, aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” the intruder marvels, voice like woven silk.
No one dares to breathe in the moments it takes Jeongguk to realize that he is the one being addressed in such an untoward manner. The omega has no problem scanning the pack alpha from head to toe, gaze lingering on his bare, sculpted torso.
The omega takes a step forward and comes closer to Jeongguk. “Mind introducing yourself to your newest packmate, big guy?”
Jeongguk grits his jaw, barely holding his tongue at the omega’s audacity. The blinding charm only serves to grit at the alpha’s nerves, but within seconds of being acquainted with this omega, he can undeniably see what his pack sees in this man, what enchants them to keep him around.
“It’s Pack Alpha Jeon for you.” Jeongguk delivers his blow calmly, aware that strategy, not impulse, would help him win this game. “But the introduction seems unnecessary because I do not remember approving a new member to this pack.”
Jeongguk catches the twitch in the omega’s eyes, but his smirk remains unfazed, fooling the crowd into buying into his fake nonchalance. The intruder licks his lips, “How delightful!” he claps, “A pack alpha so young and beautiful, everyone must love to visit these little assemblies, don’t they?”
The backhanded compliment takes him by surprise, but Jeongguk doesn’t give in. “Sweet talking won’t get you a place in this pack,” he states, voice clipped, leaving no room for argument.
The omega throws his head back and laughs, “Neither would your warmth and seduction techniques make me back down, Pack Alpha Jeon .”
He says it so mockingly, letting his gaze wander back to Jeongguk’s naked torso, that his face goes red with restrained anger. The alpha feels his blood boil at the nasty accusation.
“I don’t need to resort to dirty tricks like you,” he spits.
“On the contrary, I’m here to claim my rightfully deserved position through sheer merit.” He tuts disappointedly, “But it’s a bummer the pack alpha is so young. Who am I supposed to trust with making wise and fair decisions? How old are you? 22?”
Jeongguk is seething, but the omega is such a collected picture of calmness, that he knows he can’t let it show. “I don’t need to prove my abilities to lead the pack to someone like you. Here people have to earn the chance to prove their merit. Not jostle their way into the pack without any credibility to their identities. Just because we don’t live in the city like those filthy humans, doesn’t mean we are fools.”
He pauses to assess the omega once again, beyond his brash attire and bratty attitude, he couldn’t be any older than 25 winters himself. “Also, I easily have a decade on you,” he decidedly says.
The omega’s eyebrows shoot up to his hairline, “Really? What skincare do you use?”
The pack erupts in laughter and Jeongguk fists his hands with irritation. Arguing with this omega is turning out to be a darn slippery slope, you never know when he snatches the upper hand from right under your nose.
“Do you think this saccharine charm is going to help your case? If so, I’m not sure what you do with your time, but you’re wasting ours.”
The omega remains unaffected. He shrugs, “I heal. I already told you.”
“And I already told you that we won’t allow nobodies from the city near our sick and ailing,” he bites back.
That seems to finally get through to the omega. He takes a breath, then, “Fine. Nobodies, huh? You need credibility to my identity? How does a name for a name sound to you?”
“I already told you–”
“Your first name,” the omega cuts him off. And because Jeongguk isn’t a child like the omega, he doesn’t bother arguing over how the intruder should be going first.
“Jeongguk. Jeon Jeongguk,” he offers calmly. The omega smiles.
“Park Jimin,” he offers a hand. The alpha regrettably notices how small it is. It makes him want to be less harsh toward the younger man. Only until he opens his mouth again and says, “Nice to meet you, Jeongguk-ssi.”
The chosen term of address causes a physical reaction in the alpha.
It brings all the anger rushing back to the forefront of his mind. He glares at his hand and then back at his face, “It’s Pack Alpha Jeon for you.”
The omega clicks his tongue, takes a step forward, and forcefully grabs Jeongguk’s hand. The alpha’s mind blanks out as he registers the softest graze of skin against his own, senses swimming in the tangy notes of gardenia.
At this proximity, the alpha can see that this omega, Park Jimin, barely reaches his neck. He wonders how such a small body can hold this much audacity. Despite himself, a shimmer of respect makes its way into his chest and he returns the handshake.
“Integrate me into your pack first and then we’ll see about that.”
🍂🍂🍂
Trudging back home to his cabin that night, Jeongguk begrudgingly admits to himself that he severely underestimated his adversary.
While it can be argued that the entire pack was defenseless against Park Jimin’s boyish charms, soft smiles, and sharp tongue, Jeongguk believes that as the pack alpha, it’s no excuse. He shouldn’t have been blinded by the intruder’s omega status and gone into the confrontation without a thorough background check, only to be made to eat his own words.
Earlier that evening, the pack alpha, after consulting with the pack elders (who favored the intruder), came to the decision that Park Jimin would be working in his pack as a healer on a period of probation of eight weeks.
Jeongguk was forced to consider said probation because Park Jimin managed to prove his merit and credibility, albeit on worthless paper, to the Jeon pack.
The alpha thinks back to his conversation with the omega intruder as he grabs a washcloth and makes his way to the back of his cabin where he has constructed a makeshift shower using a pipe. Under the cold spray of water, he lets his anger simmer down and cool, making way for rational thought.
Park Jimin – an omega from the city, an undoubtedly top-of-the-class student at Seoul Medical University with various certificates of excellence in his name for his work as an intern and subsequently as a physician under training at the ER facility of Seoul Medical Center – those are the things that Jeongguk needs to focus on.
But try as he might, the pack alpha is unable to get past the why of it all.
Why would a wolf so evidently smart and brilliant choose to leave the glamor and recognition of the city behind to pursue the humble position of pack healer in the Jeon pack?
Why would an omega, who clearly prefers the city lifestyle, would leave its comfort and choose to embrace the brutish lifestyle of living in a pack on the foot of the mountains?
And above all, why would an omega be so darn adamant in his quest to be integrated into this pack, and still refuse to show respect or address the pack alpha appropriately?
Shouldn’t he be trying to earn into the pack alpha’s good graces?
The questions are an endless conquest, the answers, just like sleep, are elusive to Alpha Jeon that night.
When the first ray of the sun kisses the pack alpha’s skin the next day, Jeongguk decides to absolve all straying thoughts and replace them with one resolve – to show Park Jimin his place, (preferably far away from his mind and pack).
….
“You’re wearing a shirt today,” is Park Jimin’s greeting to Jeongguk first thing in the morning as he steps out from his training quarters. Taehyung is on his side, biting his hand to keep himself from laughing.
Jeongguk shoots the omega’s comment down with a glare, not bothering with a response. “Good morning, Taehyung. Thank you for bringing him, I’ll take it from here,” he chooses to say instead.
“Yes, alpha. I’ll see you in an hour,” he says and takes his leave. Jeongguk briefly glances over the omega. He is wearing jeans today, ripped. He grimaces as he looks at his own ripped pants. It’s staggering to the alpha how someone’s struggle could be someone else’s fashion. To make up for the covered legs, Jimin is wearing a crop top. As if showing skin is a prerequisite to inhalation.
The sun rays catch on something metallic on the otherwise pale skin of the omega’s stomach and the alpha’s eyes naturally follow it.
“It’s a navel piercing,” the omega chirps as if it’s something to be proud of. The alpha chooses to ignore that piece of information and forces his gaze away from the patch of skin. “You’re only here because winter is approaching and we might be able to put you to good use while the healers in training graduate. Don’t get too hopeful,” he says, as he starts walking towards the village center.
“You’re also wearing shoes. I think I need better shoes,” Jimin observes, falling in step with the alpha, completely ignoring Jeongguk’s statement.
It makes him want to snap, but he knows it's a test – a test for his patience. So he picks up his speed and continues, “At the end of eight weeks, the pack will see you for what I already do – a farce. Until then, you are to stay away from our pups and all forms of supply – food, medicine, arms, or otherwise.”
Jimin nods like he follows every word the alpha is saying, his gaze, however, wanders idly to study the scanty structures that they pass by. To the alpha’s displeasure, the omega, despite his tiny feet and heeled boots, is able to keep up with Jeongguk’s long strides with little effort. When Jimin looks up at him, his strained breathing is the only confirmation that the alpha’s purposeful pace is affecting him.
“I like your make-up. Are you wearing kohl? It makes your eyes pop, and they’re already so big. It’s very attractive,” he says, and Jungkook’s mind screeches to a halt, clear of all previous thoughts. It is laborious to control his scent from giving away the sharp jump in his heartbeat.
Moon Goddess , the alpha thinks, this man is dangerous .
Jeongguk somehow remains stoic and since he refuses to lose their newfound ‘ignore each other and make your own point’ game, he continues with shop-talk, “This is the village center that houses most of the Jeon pack. The pack is composed of roughly 70 wolves.”
Fortunately, it finally brings the omega to his page. “Roughly? Do you not know your own pack, Jeongguk-ssi?” There’s mirth in Jimin’s incredulation and Jeongguk despises it.
“It’s Pack Alpha Jeon for you. Two pups are on the way, and I prefer not to count them into the populace before they are safely born and blessed by the Moon Goddess,” he responds matter-of-factly as they round the corner towards the healer’s cabin and the medicinal bay, “This is the healing quarters. The healer’s cabin adjacent to it has been unoccupied since Omega Kim passed away.”
Jimin halts in his steps and the alpha turns to find all humor drained from his face. “What does that even mean? How can you not count your own pack’s pups?” he asks.
“Our infant mortality rate is high.” The answer makes the omega scowl.
“And you still have the audacity to resist my appointment as pack healer? When you can’t even save your pups and are in dire need of my skills?”
It is clearly an attack and Jeongguk’s hackles raise in response. It’s out of his control when a growl builds in his chest and the omega flinches, taking a step back. His face, however, looks unafraid, challenging, even.
“It’s why I don’t approve of you,” Jeongguk grits out, “Who knows where you come from and what motives bring you here, Jimin-ssi ?” he takes his name like an insult.
Jimin scoffs, “You have a lot of nerve to be talking about my motives when you can’t even be hopeful about something as sacred as childbirth in your pack!” The omega looks personally offended and it infuriates the alpha.
“It’s called being practical. It’s how we efficiently manage our resources, especially when the pregnancy is as precarious as this one, with twin pups and the absence of a head healer. This is how our pack has been operating for years. What do you know of the ways to run a pack when you’re just a pup?”
“I know enough to understand that wolves are the most important resource in a pack, and you are clearly not fit to manage them. And I’ll have you know, I’m 24, don’t try to patronize me. Just because I don’t pop a knot like you, doesn’t make me any less than you,” the omega growls, and Jeongguk is taken aback, both with the omega’s brash words and the matter’s escalation.
Discussing a knot in an argument with an omega makes Jeongguk extremely uncomfortable.
He goes beet red as he tries to defend himself, “I implied no such thing. I will not let you twist my words to make me out to be one of those orthodox, oppressive, and discriminatory pack alphas. The Jeon Pack has some rules and traditions, is all. And everyone is obligated to follow them without question.”
Jimin takes a step forward and lets the silence hang for a few seconds, then breathes, “And if we break those rules? Do you then become oppressive and discriminatory in the face of a challenge?”
The taunt and blatant disregard for Jeongguk’s words and principles send white-hot anger rushing through the alpha. He has never been so enraged with an omega, despite being the pack leader for years now, despite having handled multiple offenders from his own pack, enemy packs, and rogues alike.
Every impulse in his gut tells him to put this omega in his place, show him what true authority means, what he is capable of doing in the face of a challenge. His alpha, on the other hand, just wants to make the omega submit. With great restraint, Jeongguk reigns them both back.
“How dare you challenge my treatment of my packmates?” he roars and steps forward.
“This is why I find it hard to believe that those certificates and degrees have any true merit to them. You come from the city yet you are barely civilized. You claim to have top-tier academic and professional experience yet you can’t seem to so much as grasp the concepts of protocol, authority, and hierarchy. You claim to be a doctor. How can a doctor be so obtuse?” he seethes in the omega’s face, hot breath fanning over Jimin’s soft, blonde locks.
For a few moments, Jeongguk thinks he sees flickers of gold in the omega’s eyes. His sweet gardenia scent turns heavy, that spicy undertone that the alpha is yet to name intensifying.
And still, Park Jimin refuses to stand down. He doesn’t back away, doesn’t cower, or even lower his gaze.
One moment turns to a few, and soon, he feels like the narrow breadth of air between them, where their breaths intermingle, gets charged with something entirely foreign. The longer Jeongguk looks at the omega, the further he spaces out from his source of outrage, a sense of faux peace creeping into his body.
Park Jimin , Jeongguk thinks again, is indeed a very dangerous man.
“PACK ALPHA!” a shrill scream breaks them apart, sobriety washing over Jeongguk like he was doused with a bucket of cold water.
He turns around to find one of the pups running towards him, evidently distressed. Jimin, perhaps on instinct, releases calming pheromones to soothe the child and Jeongguk belatedly wonders how he managed to daze the alpha just a few moments ago without using them.
“Alpha Jeon! Taehyung hyung is in trouble!” the pup, Songha huffs out. As if on cue, Jeongguk smells his best friend’s scent, now laced with distress and something extremely sour. It can’t possibly be good.
Namjoon and Seokjin soon come into sight, heaving the wounded alpha along.
“Poison,” Jimin whispers, sniffing the air, eyes going wide in horror. “Why the hell do you have a Carantula here?” he asks to no one in particular because Jeongguk and the poor child surely can’t be expected to know what that thing even means.
He lets the omega mutter incoherent curses while he rushes to his friends. “It’s a snake bite,” Namjoon informs as Jeongguk takes over from his omega, Seokjin, and shoulders the weight of Taehyung, who is on the verge of passing out.
“Why is he like this? Snake bites can’t possibly cause this much harm around here.” Jeongguk enquires, barging into the medical bay and laying Taehyung down on a bed. He bends down to study the bite on his left foot. It’s already swollen and turning a shade of ugly grey-blue.
As a means of first aid, Seokjin has tied a scarf around his feet to contain the venom, but the green veins on the alpha’s calf tell Jeongguk it’s hardly of any help.
The Jeon pack generally has roles divided for each member at an early age to ensure that every wolf can focus on one specialty and master it completely. However, since Jeongguk’s fate as the future pack alpha was sealed as early as his first hunt at the age of thirteen, he tried to educate himself with the basics of almost everything that a pack could require assistance with – including medicine.
From his preliminary knowledge of medicine, Jeongguk can tell this is no ordinary reaction to a snake bite. From his hunting and scouting expertise, he can be sure that the bite marks are foreign.
“The snake is foreign,” he concludes and informs his audience. The distress in the room intensifies. He looks over to Seokjin with hopeful eyes, but the omega only confirms the alpha’s worrying suspicion, “We don’t have antidotes for foreign snake bites, Jeonggu– eh Alpha.”
Jeongguk takes a deep breath to calm himself before peering over at Taehyung, who seems to be conscious but completely out of it. He taps his cheek to bring him back to the room, “Taehyung-ah, you’ll be absolutely fine. I’ll figure something out,” he whispers softly.
“Jeongguk-ah, please don’t let them cut it,” Taehyung croaks, voice laced with raw fear. The pack alpha’s heart breaks a little because, from the looks of it, they might not be able to get their hands on the antidote in time. And to save his friend’s life, amputating his foot, perhaps more than that would be the only viable option.
Seokjin voices his thoughts, “Alpha, I trust we only have about 30 minutes to try and save his leg.”
Jeongguk’s heart falls into his stomach, deep guilt and sorrow filling him, a sense of despair as he gets up and frantically starts barking orders. He starts making mental calculations – he needs to call in a favor with the neighboring packs. Even if he shifts, it will take at least 10 minutes to reach their territory and a few more to negotiate and get the antidote.
Taehyung completely loses his composure within that time, “Please, Jeongguk-ah. You still owe me from when I let you steal my kite. And from when I gave you that extra piece of meat. And also when I took the blame for setting the kitchen on fire. You owe, me Jeongguk,” he wails, “I can’t live without a leg.”
Helplessness starts hollowing Jeongguk out as he prepares to shift and make the run of his life.
“Can you live with a scarred leg?” Jimin’s voice suddenly cuts through the tension of the medical bay, and before anyone has the time to react, Taehyung lets out a blood-curdling scream and starts shaking aggressively.
Park Jimin just put burning coals on his best friend’s injured feet.
“WHAT IN THE MOON GODDESS’S NAME ARE YOU DOING? HOW DARE YOU HURT MY FRIEND?” Jeongguk hollers, ready to unleash his wrath on the omega. Namjoon looks out of his mind with anger too.
“I’m heeding your friend’s request. If you want to help me, find this snake for me,” Jimin says calmly, pushing a device towards Jeongguk, flashing a picture of a red Morno snake. “It should be easy to find in your territory.”
Jeongguk grabs the device from the omega’s hands and flings it across the room, growling so loud, that the walls shiver in fright. “Do you take me for a fool, omega? Now is not the time for flaunting your cheap city tricks. I know for a fact this snake did not bite him.”
Jimin is busy tying a fresh bandage, doused in some herbs across the bite as he nods. “That’s very good, Jeongguk-ssi. You are right. As I previously said, this bite is from a Carantula. I could tell from the smell of the poison, but now I’m sure having looked at the bite mark. If you didn’t break my phone in your fit of rage, I could have proven it to you.”
Seokjin lets out a gasp, “He’s right. I have read something like this before, but never seen it in practice.”
The room descends into a thick silence as they stare at Jimin like he’s grown three heads. What sort of treatment could involve burning a patient with coal and then using another snake for goddess knows what?
The omega, meanwhile, inches closer to Taehyung and gently brushes a few stray strands of hair away from his face. He then leans down to whisper into his ear, as if the whole room doesn’t have superhuman hearing, “Don’t you worry. Before your grumpy pack alpha threw his tantrum, I already texted my nurse in Seoul. Yoongi will bring you ointments that will work miracles on your scar.”
Despite the pain, it somehow makes Taehyung smile and despite himself, Jeongguk feels a weight lift off his shoulders. Jimin leans back and studies Taehyung’s face then says, “I’m not sure if it’s even possible, but the ointment might just make you more handsome than you already are.” He clicks his tongue, “Goddess bless our poor mortal hearts.”
The room erupts into giggles and Jeongguk watches, bewildered as he is rushed out of the room and sent to fetch a snake-like an errand boy.
🍂🍂🍂
A miracle worker.
That’s what the Jeon Pack starts calling the omega intruder since the snake affair.
While Jeongguk immensely appreciates the results and is eternally grateful (albeit after a fair amount of sulking) to the omega for saving his childhood friend’s leg, he absolutely despises the execution.
In the alpha’s esteemed opinion, the incident is yet another demonstration of why Park Jimin is not fit to be the Jeon pack’s healer. His practice in the ER back in Seoul is irrefutably helpful. That much Jeongguk agrees. But his bed-side etiquettes are non existent.
First – Jimin has a habit of coming on to his patients by using inappropriate innuendos like they were salve.
Alphas, omegas, and betas alike – Park Jimin doesn’t discriminate. The pack eats it all up like there has never been any professionalism to be maintained between a doctor and their patient. “He heals with his spirit while his words and hands do their magic,” they say.
If there indeed is any magic involved, Jeongguk thinks it’s black.
Second – Jimin cannot, or simply does not want to respect the chain of command.
His rushed, consentless antics during the snake affair did save Taehyung’s life, but not running his theories or treatments through elders or other people concerned can be dangerous. Even in hospitals, such protocols are important, and Jimin’s blatant disregard for them makes the alpha’s blood boil.
Third – Jimin uses his job as a temp healer to do ridiculous research.
The worst part is that the entire pack supports him, encourages him even. Ever since he offered to publish a step-by-step procedure on how to treat foreign snake bites and how the red Monro snake venom can cancel out the poison from the Carantula snake venom, which are obviously valuable resources for the pack, the Jeon wolves have sworn their loyalty to the omega.
Now, Jeongguk would normally ignore such endeavors and focus on more important duties – like finding the culprit behind the Carantula snake attack, for example. But Park Jimin makes it outright impossible to focus.
Of course , the only time the omega comes down to Jeongguk’s cabin to actually seek permission for something, is to make the most ridiculous request ever.
“You want to do WHAT?”
“Use omega slick to develop medicine. I have an additional degree in biochemistry and a few critically acclaimed papers in this field, in case you’re questioning my credibility again, Jeongguk-ssi” Jimin says, slipping a folder across the table.
Jeongguk thinks this doctor needs to get himself checked in the head. What kind of omega passively uses knots in an argument and slick in a casual R&D proposal?
He carefully studies the omega’s hair, particularly the roots. What did the city wolves say about natural blondes? It has to be true if the omega can spew shit like this.
“For the hundredth time, it’s Pack Alpha Jeon for you. And is this another one of your tricks to ruffle my feathers? I know you delight in it,” the alpha says, and the omega bursts out in giggles.
Jeongguk goes speechless for two reasons – 1. The laughter is entirely uncalled for. He feels insulted at his jab being received as a joke. 2. Why do Park Jimin’s giggles sound like music?
“ Ruffle my feathers? Jeez, you really do have a stick up your ass,” Jimin chimes in between his giggles.
The alpha frowns, peeved, and lifts a finger toward the omega, “That’s your third strike. You are either not healthy, or the city and the humans have polluted your vocabulary to an irreparable extent. Is it necessary to bring up our nether regions in every other conversation?”
Jimin’s giggles melt into full-blown laughter and Jeongguk has to stop and stare. He’s seen feral wolves before. But this is only the first fully functional madman he’s witnessing.
“You’re literally only proving my point. Is it so necessary to get hung up over every little thing?” He tuts, then leans forward with a proud smile, “I want you to note my effort here – I could have easily said, ‘get your panties in a twist’ instead of ‘hung up’, but I am being considerate of your capacity to handle slang in a day.”
Jeongguk goes through a complete range of emotions – incredulity, irritation, helplessness, pity, and much more within the few seconds Jimin takes to stand up and lean further across the table to reach into the alpha’s personal space, “We wouldn’t want you to work yourself up and overheat now, would we?”
When Jimin promptly sees himself out, Jeongguk huffs out a breath he didn’t know he was holding, a single thought in his mind – scrubbing the lingering gardenia out of his skin would be a task that night.
….
Jeongguk doesn’t know if he should feel personally offended or ruefully guilty about the fact that his packmates are straight-up dumb.
Within two weeks, Jimin worms into their heartfelt embraces faster than Jeongguk was able to in years. And the alpha had the added advantage of shared bloodline and being a cute little pup !
Given that even in his childhood, Jeongguk was a tad bit too grumpy and uptight – he received more furtive glances than those filled with adoration – but it still doesn’t explain why even his closest friends, the ones that form his inner circle, turn their back on him in favor of befriending the omega intruder.
Namjoon accuses him of being unjust; he thinks that Jimin’s city background is predisposing the pack alpha to think ill of him.
Jeongguk disagrees. In fact, he thinks Jimin’s alleged beauty and shameless charm, even the novelty of his attire and vocabulary is what’s blinding the older alpha to the omega’s ill devices. He doesn’t express as much, because, at the ripe age of 32, he thinks he’s too young to be strangled at the hands of Kim Seokjin.
Jeongguk can understand Taehyung’s fascination with the omega. It can be fairly attributed to gratefulness and a little bit of devotion that the alpha feels to pay the favor of life back in kind. What he finds completely unreasonable is his best friend tucking his tail between his legs and following the city wolf around the pack, calling Jimin his soulmate.
Jeongguk despises it.
He despises it when he finds Taehyung gone for hours, only for him to come back smelling of herbs and gardenia. Unfathomably, he despises it even more when he encounters Jimin around the pack, smelling of several alphas, and among them is always prominent Taehyung’s ashy scent.
The worst part of it all is that the frequency of his encounters with Jimin is inversely proportional to his commitment to avoid the occurrence. The more Jeongguk tries to steer clear of the blonde’s path, the more he ends up being confronted with Jimin’s unruly smile.
For example, Jimin is frequently found at the nursery when Jeongguk shows up to do his rounds, narrating stories from the city and from realms unknown, despite having been clearly instructed to stay away from the pups.
When the pack alpha questions it, he simply goes, “Jeongguk-ssi, a few meters of distance is also considered ‘away’, don’t you think?” tone saccharine sweet. He then sidles up to the alpha. When Jeongguk stands his ground, the omega leans forward and whispers, “Now this would be considered getting close .”
“It’s Pack Alpha Jeon for you,” Jeongguk helplessly reminds and all the omega has in response is that smile .
Next, Jimin starts appearing at the pack meetings, despite having been clearly explained that his probationary appointment excludes him from the privilege. It irks him so much, that Jeongguk can’t help the jab that leaves his lips, “This meeting is for everyone except pups and intruders. You, Jimin-ssi, are both.”
“Jeongguk-ssi, you are the one who keeps insisting I call you Pack Alpha Jeon. I figured you’d like to show me why you’re worth it,” he says and the crowd may have missed it in lieu of gasping over the discourteous remark, but Jeongguk doesn’t miss the wink that he finishes off his statement with.
The rest of the meeting continues with that smile plastered on Jimin’s exasperatingly smug face.
And try as he might, Jeongguk can’t look away when the omega flashes it at him, even letting it get under his skin for some reason, giving the younger man the reaction that he always seeks, scowling and bemoaning away at him.
The alpha’s resolve to do something about this behavior strengthens the day he finds Park Jimin, bright and early and way too cheery at the treeline that separates the center of the pack from their hunting grounds.
Two weeks of tolerating the omega’s presence is enough for Jeongguk to reckon what’s brewing in Jimin’s mind.
“No. I will not allow it,” he says authoritatively as soon as he reaches the wolves in waiting, determined to not let the intruder bend more of his rules.
Jimin chuckles, easily catching on to being addressed, “Come on Jeongguk-ssi, play fair. Let a poor man at least pose the question.”
For a change, Jimin is fully covered today, in loose cargo pants and a long-sleeved t-shirt. It’s counterproductive to what he’s clearly here for – hunting. Jeongguk doesn’t linger on that train of thought, however.
“It would be a waste of both our time. We wouldn’t want to lose precious daylight trying to placate a pup who wants in on the big boy table.” Jeongguk taunts, uncaring of Namjoon and Taehyung’s disgruntled glare boring holes in the back of his head.
Jimin opens his mouth to protest but the alpha cuts him off, not in the mood to ruin his perfect hunting trip with a bad taste in his mouth, “And before you question which of my principles motivate this decision, let me clarify it to you, this is not about sub-gender. This is about training, skill, experience, and above all, coordination and understanding between the Jeon Pack hunters. You clearly lack in every department,” he completes, giving the youngest wolf a once-over.
For the first time in weeks, Jeongguk thinks he’s winning an argument with Park Jimin, because the blonde man presses his lips in a thin line, eyes downcast yet calculating.
“Test me,” the omega finally says, “Let me catch a hare. If I succeed, you suck it up, be the big boy you are, and let me in on your table.”
The choice of words, like it usually does between the two, hits the pack alpha’s nerves and he growls at the omega before barking out a command to ‘let the test begin.’
In hindsight, Jeongguk should have recognized the fierce look in Jimin’s eyes and known that the challenge was not posed out of impulse, but out of confidence. But the ship sails before the alpha has the chance to finish cleaning his nails with his hunting knife.
The city omega drops a dead rabbit on his feet, and the smile on his face as he does so, can be described as nothing other than shit-eating. It’s a clean kill and Jimin doesn’t look too exhausted; makes it really difficult for Jeongguk to pretend he’s not impressed.
His contemplative silence costs him dearly when Jimin opens his mouth.
“What? Want me to skin it for you too? Make a nice pelt out of it?”
Jeongguk’s mouth hangs open in shock, as does of the several wolves in his hunting pack. Jimin’s tone is dripping with sarcasm, the usual mirth on his face convincing the alpha that the omega has absolutely no idea what he just implied.
What happens next, the pack alpha would probably never be able to put a rhyme or reason to.
“Stick close and I’ll show you what a nice pelt looks like,” Jeongguk blurts out.
It’s driven entirely out of raw instinct – the understanding that the omega is clueless and defenseless against the pack’s courting rituals, the knowledge that Jimin just disclosed this weakness in front of several packmates, many of whom are unmated, and the need to protect him from any unsolicited advances.
It is so uncharacteristic for Jeongguk, that even Jimin is silenced for the remainder of the hunt; up until he is required to coordinate with the members to help the pack alpha take a bear down.
They decide to not hunt anything else that day, because with the way Jimin squeals and jumps, throwing his fist in the air to celebrate his first big kill with the hunting pack, it’s a silent understanding among the Jeon Pack wolves that all possible prey have already skittered away.
And only because Jeongguk is high off one of his swiftest and most elegant kills, he leaves the pup be, drowning in the giggles that ricochet off the trees.
When Jeongguk gets back home, he doesn’t think about the beads of sweat on the omega’s face and neck that shimmered in the morning sunlight, causing constant distraction to the alpha all day.
He doesn’t repeat the memory of Jimin’s awe-struck face when Jeongguk sliced the neck of the bear clean, on a loop behind his eyelids.
And he definitely doesn’t ponder over the ghost of the omega’s gentle touch over his naked skin as Jimin tended to the little cuts and bruises right after the hunt.
He absolutely doesn’t do all of that.
But when he falls asleep, he lets himself dream of soft, pillowy lips pressing feather-soft kisses over his wounds, silky, blonde locks tickling his face and neck, eyes like crescent moons, smiling up at him, and an airy whisper from fragments of reality,
“Jeongguk-ssi, sleep tight, don’t let the bed bugs bite!”
🍂🍂🍂
The first time Jeon Jeongguk experiences a near seizure is when he sees Park Jimin naked.
Now, don’t get him wrong, he has seen a fair share of naked wolves in his life. Omegas, too. But the context makes the world of a difference. And in the Jeon Pack, omegas get naked in front of alphas only in bed.
So naturally, when Jeongguk is leisurely taking a dip in the lake right behind his cabin, where no one comes, especially as the crips autumn wind settles around them post sundown, and he emerges out of the water to see the most glorious ass to ever grace this world, a near-death experience should not come as a surprise.
His breath catches in his throat, heart ceasing for a few seconds, body going rigid as if he’s paralyzed under the water. Jeongguk watches shamefully, only the top of his head and eyes peeking over the surface, as Park Jimin shreds layer by layer of his clothing.
The alpha knows he should reveal himself. He knows he should reprimand the omega for being so careless with his decency at once. At the least, Jeongguk knows he should turn away.
But he stays frozen in his position, the ripples in the water around him coming to a standstill. It’s breathtaking, the way Jimin’s now slightly longer, blonde hair curl around the nape of his neck, where a crescent moon sits. He studies how the moon waxes and wanes along his spine, his fingertips prickling with the need to run them over the tattoos.
It’s so pretty and so Jimin , that it clogs up the alpha’s throat because, for the first time, Jeongguk sees the ethereal beauty in the omega that everyone keeps talking about.
Anger and ego must really be blinding to a man because Jeongguk can’t believe how a mortal can look at Park Jimin and not marvel at how delicately he’s made, and how tastefully he’s chosen to adorn his body with his own interpretation of the universal elements.
The omega bends down to get rid of his pants and in the most mortifying moment of his life, Jeongguk’s body betrays him and sends a rush of blood straight to his crotch. The alpha gasps as he feels his cock chub up in three seconds flat under the divine power of Jimin’s ass, struggling but failing to keep the arousal from leaking into his scent.
“Jeongguk-ssi,” the omega squeals from the bank, looking slightly embarrassed and flushed at the alpha’s clear arousal filling the air. Jeongguk pays him no mind because he has harder things to cater to. So on instinct, he pulls himself entirely underwater.
He hears the familiar giggles, albeit muffled, close in toward him and his heart seizes again. Every attempt to will his boner down is to no avail, his body heating up in the ice-cold water.
Dangerous , his brain supplies, that man, Park Jimin .
When Jeongguk feels the water part and ripple, he decides to break the surface and take a peek again. Jimin is neck-deep in the water, his body a distorted reflection beneath the surface.
“I didn’t expect you here at this time of the day,” the omega says. The alpha can’t tell if his face is pinched pink with residual embarrassment or the cold, but it makes his button nose look so cute , that Jeongguk feels an urge to eat it up.
He scowls at himself as soon as the thought invades his mind. Jimin takes it personally.
“Jeez, will you ever relax around me?” he asks, looking mildly offended.
“Aren’t you cold?” is Jeongguk’s genius response.
Jimin smiles, “On the contrary, I’m very hot.”
The alpha rolls his eyes, “Goddess forbid if you ever reign in your innuendos–”
“Actually, I meant I’m running a very high fever. I’m quite literally very hot right now.”
Embarrassment doubles down on him and Jeongguk wants to drown himself right there. He blames his half-hard dick for making him directly jump to that conclusion.
But then Jimin’s words register and everything melts into annoyance, “You are sick and you’re taking a dip in a freezing cold lake? Do you want to die? I can’t believe I entrusted you with my entire pack’s health. Goddess, you’re crazy ,” he rants as he swims towards the omega and grabs him by his bicep, actively ignoring their nakedness beneath the water.
Jimin sighs, jerking himself out of the alpha’s hold. “Jeongguk-ssi, I’d rather not fight.”
“Jimin-ssi, unlike you, I don’t delight in locking horns with you. But you are being irrational, probably because the fever got to your head. Now don’t be a pup and get out of the water before you worsen your health.”
Jeongguk doesn’t understand what part of his statement, which in his opinion was very thoughtfully drafted, deeply offends the omega, but the light in his eyes dims instantly.
He runs both his hands through his hair and huffs, “In cases of extremely high fever, when medicines don’t work by themselves, it is essential to force the body’s temperature down. A shock of cold water is considered the most effective treatment. I know your intentions aren’t wrong, so I won’t hold this against you. But honestly, what do I have to do to prove my competence to you? Will you ever completely trust me and credit me for my skills? Will you ever set your prejudices aside to actually stop and think why I am doing what I’m doing?”
The moment that leaves Jimin’s mouth, he visibly flinches and bites his tongue. He turns around and treks towards the bank, Jeongguk follows hot on his heels – half concerned, half dumbfounded.
“Nevermind,” Jimin mumbles, enunciating the tattoo pierced on his ribs, “You might be onto something. I must be immature and just a pup, because why else would I still seek your validation?” he grunts over his shoulder as he continues towards his clothes.
Jeongguk turns around to give him the chance to dress in privacy. When he’s done, the omega gives the pack alpha no such opportunity in return.
Jimin confidently locks eyes with the older man and says, “You know what, I’ll do better. I’ll be mature and stop giving a fuck about what you think. I’ve worked hard to get where I am. The pack acknowledges it. Taehyung acknowledges it. When this stupid probation ends and the entire Jeon Pack wants me as your head healer, you and your ancient beliefs can suck my dick .”
Jeongguk’s stomach twists with foreign emotions as the omega turns around and leaves. This time around, the alpha had no intentions of implying any of what the city omega just interpreted. For some reason, the misunderstanding makes the alpha more uncomfortable than he would care to admit.
Jeongguk probably shouldn’t even be taking his words seriously because they are certainly coming out of Jimin’s exhaustion and sickness-addled thoughts. But they echo in his mind as he wordlessly follows the omega back to his temporary cabin.
If the pack alpha invades Park Jimin’s kitchen and makes him soup that night, no one needs to know, not even the omega himself.
🍂🍂🍂
Jimin’s words stick to Jeongguk like leeches. He can’t get rid of them, and they suck all his focus away like leeches do blood. But they also metaphorically revive the blood circulation to his brain because the alpha actually sheds the cobwebs of his prejudice and starts putting some pieces together.
It’s not that Jeongguk never considered the why . It has been his number one concern since the day Park Jimin walked in, or well, greeted him with a headstand.
It’s just that Jeongguk had been too self-centered to go beyond the question and explore the possible answers from the omega’s perspective.
Instead of holding blind indignation for the omega for simply who he is and where he comes from, when Jimin has given him every reason to trust him, Jeongguk decides to look deeper.
And when he does, he discovers an entirely new Park Jimin. In fact, he discovers several new layers to the person Jeongguk superciliously thought he had all figured out.
The first thing about Park Jimin – he blooms in attention. He enjoys dallying with Taehyung in his free time and playing loud pranks (what a pup), he loves it when Namjoon and Seokjin dote on him, feeding him the juiciest pieces of meat because he’s still a growing man (also means he’s a pup), and he absolutely thrives when one of his stories or dance performances attracts a crowd and people cheer him on.
And despite the constant clashes with the pack alpha, Jeongguk has noticed that the pup also finds an inexplicable sense of gratification when the attention comes from him. For some reason, it makes Jeongguk’s alpha puff up his chest in pride. Jeongguk doesn’t hate the feeling either.
Somewhere along the line ever since that realization, he unknowingly starts indulging Jimin. Their confrontations, taunts, and jabs grow in number by the day, but the bite is barely there anymore.
Another thing about Park Jimin – he brightens up when he helps people and hates drawing attention for it. Only those who intently observe the omega can tell, but it’s evident from his actions – the way he silently sneaks into the communal kitchen and distracts the omegas with his stories while helping them prepare dinner, how he maintains a brave face to entertain the kids, even when he’s tired or sick, which much to Jeongguk’s displeasure, he falls quite often.
Park Jimin is no angel, nor an epitome of sacrifice.
He’s just a little demon for things that don’t matter, and a little too humble for things that actually do.
Jeongguk’s alpha feels it’s entirely too precious and adorable. Jeongguk doesn’t deny or agree, simply shelves the building appreciation into the “pros” section of his ongoing evaluation list. They’re surely good attributes for a head healer.
The alpha learns little things about the blonde omega (now with dark roots), like how he presents himself as bold and coquettish but is quick to blush and shy away when someone seriously makes an advance on him. Jeongguk also learns little things about himself, like how he despises it when someone seriously makes an advance on Jimin.
Bit by bit, little by little, the omega intruder manages to procure confidence within Jeongguk.
That is until he notices something really big. A pattern.
When Jeongguk puts it together, it’s so obvious , he can’t believe no one has noticed it yet.
It’s appalling and leaves cold dread in Jeongguk’s chest in the wake of the realization, but the alpha cannot turn a blind eye to it. It’s clear as the day, Jimin is surveying the pack.
Jeongguk spends five days monitoring the city omega since the seed of suspicion first takes hold in his mind.
He wills himself to not jump to unjust conclusions and rebukes himself for not being able to shirk away from his preconceived notions about the omega to the extent of paranoia, but when he sees Jimin step out of the sixth cabin that week and immediately send out a communication on his little smart device, the alpha can’t blame himself anymore.
Six cabins, six families, six days.
Each time, Jimin would spend some time with a family of the Jeon Pack, smiling and giggling at their doorstep, embracing them as if life were all unicorns and rainbows for them. Each time, the moment the door would close behind him, his smile would snap, face contorted, the world fading into dull grays – colors which the Park Jimin that the Jeon Pack has come to know, would never be normally associated with.
And every single time, Jimin would take out his little contraption from his pocket, and furiously type away, a despondent heaviness weighing his scent and aura down.
From what he can understand, Jimin is surveying the pack, asking questions, and reporting back, assumably to someone from the city.
Jeongguk feels flummoxed at the cold sense of dread that washes over him at the realization that Park Jimin, is in fact, here with an underlying intention. It unsettles him that there is no satisfaction to be found at being right about the intruder, at his first assumption holding water. To his great confusion, both his alpha and Jeongguk himself wants desperately to be wrong about his suspicions.
On the seventh day, Jeongguk decides to follow him. On the seventh day, Jimin finally breaks his pattern. That night, he doesn’t survey a particular family.
He doesn’t look any less suspicious, however, when he sneaks out of his cabin after midnight, having told everyone that he would like to sleep in early to recover from his cold.
The rest of the pack is having a jovial night of food and laughter near the bonfire. It’s the perfect distraction for whatever Jimin has set out to do, hidden under an oversized cloak, scent masked to smell like freshly washed laundry.
The omega is light on his legs, his steps confident and swift as he makes his way through the various rows of cabins and workshops.
The alpha follows him like his shadow, his own scent dulled to mix with the forest around them, steps light like a ghost. Unlike Jimin, who’s not so bad at hunting himself, Jeongguk has grown up training how to be the apex predator around here in these lands. Stalking prey comes as easy as breathing to him, and yet, suffocating apprehension that grips his throat as he chases behind Jimin is something he decidedly doesn’t like.
As a pack leader, Jeongguk is only mildly concerned, for he trusts himself enough to uncover Jimin’s intentions before he has any chance to bring his pack any harm. As a friend, Jeongguk feels greatly uneasy, because he knows for a fact how invested Kim Taehyung, Namjoon hyung and Seokjin hyung, and all the members of the hunting pack are in the city omega’s well-being.
Jeongguk’s first assumption is that the omega would break into someone’s home, probably someone whom he couldn’t get through to using his sprightly charms. He’s quickly proven wrong when Jimin stops at the rusty doors of the pack library. It’s not hard for the pack alpha to put two and two together then.
The library is a front to the most ancient and biggest archives that a single pack has been in possession of.
The Jeon Pack was the largest pack in the east side of the world until the Jeon-Park Civil War. After the war, the archives ended up in the Jeon territory and the Park pack ended up being dismantled and razed to the ground, the few remaining wolves either turning up dead or rogue.
That Park Jimin is after information, is clear. But if he has any connection to the long-forgotten history of their lands, if his familiar family name is the reason for some misguided, elaborate revenge scheme, is yet to be determined.
For the first time, when it comes to Park Jimin, Jeongguk doesn’t want to make assumptions.
Because if he were to give in and assume, it would mean that every sly smile, every curious glance, every mocking jab he ever sent the alpha’s way, were as much of a counterfeit as his nicety. And Jeongguk is not quite ready to come to terms with that.
So, the pack alpha stays mum as he follows the omega into the library, through the lesser-known passage, and into the archives. He patiently waits along the archive’s awning, breath bated, until he hears a loud crash, and then a sniffle.
Jeongguk waits for a few moments to be absolutely sure that he’s hearing right, but when Jimin’s scent rises through his masking and it is laced with heavy undertones of distress, the alpha abandons all plans of stealth and rushes in.
He finds Park Jimin, looking smaller than ever, trapped at an awkward angle under a fallen cabinet of bookshelves, splayed like a starfish on the ground, sniffling and crying with his eyes closed. His heart clenches at the sight.
“Alpha,” he sobs out, “please help me,” and just like that, every single cell in Jeongguk’s body responds immediately to the request, a kind of feral desperation in his movement as he gets to work rescuing the omega. The alpha also, in the depths of his heart realizes, that the plea means more than what it implies in the moment, but he has no time to ponder over that.
With a loud growl, he hauls the cabinet and tugs it away from Jimin, age-old books come crashing down as he overturns it.
Only when he pulls the omega safely in his embrace, does Jeongguk realize that he has been reeking the room with his distressed scent ever since heard Jimin cry. Now, as he holds the blonde man and the cloying scent in the room clings to the omega, Jeongguk feels a lot more grounded and a lot less like he wants to burn down this archive.
And yet, the first words that leave the alpha’s lips are, “These fucking books cost a fortune and generations' worth of history, you– you irresponsible, impetuous, absolutely reckless little PUP!”
All the fear and despondence wipe clean off Jimin’s face in an instant and he scowls, “Who are you calling a pup, you– you senile DILF!”
A few moments of silence descend between the two during which Jeongguk’s hold over the omega loosens and they both let their words and the situation dawn on them. With the pack alpha revealing himself here, he can no longer be sure where they stand in this cat-and-mouse chase anymore.
“What in Goddess’s name is a dilf ?” Jeongguk chooses to ask eventually, thoroughly confused.
Despite himself, Jimin cracks a small smile, and it makes the alpha’s gut uncoil proportionally. “It’s uhh-,” he visibly gulps, “It’s slang for a dad.”
Jeongguk frowns, unable to understand the word’s correlation to their argument. Jimin’s all previous jabs had been smart, albeit inappropriate and shameless, but sensible in a crafty way nonetheless. “That barely makes sense. I haven’t fathered a pup yet,” Jeongguk complains, eyebrows furrowing, grip on Jimin’s waist tightening.
The omega moves in his hold, but doesn’t make any effort to get out of it, “Well, you calling me a pup doesn’t make any sense either, Jeongguk-ssi , I am a 24-year-old adult!”
Jeongguk scoffs, “Then behave like one!” It’s after screaming in his face that the alpha realizes that Jimin is indeed, suffering from cold and the sniffling was a result of that. He doesn’t know if he should be appeased at the fact that Jimin was not crying, or be outraged at the omega’s incautiousness to be out loitering in cold when sick.
He obviously chooses the latter.
“Why are you spreading your sickness to my age-old archives? Do you even know the kind of heritage it carries?”
Jimin flinches slightly at that and in a very small voice, he answers, “I do know.”
Jeongguk’s expression softens, heart beating erratically as he lets the omega go. It’s time, they both know, for the question of the hour – “What are you doing here then?” the pack alpha asks, his voice soft but words determined.
Jimin meets his eyes with a kind of ferocity he has never seen before. For a moment, the omega looks like he’s contemplating opening his heart to the pack alpha, and for that sacred moment, Jeongguk thinks he will open his arms and accept the truth, whatever it may be.
“What are you doing here?” the omega chooses to ask instead and it breaks the moment like glass, never to be amended again.
Jeongguk grits his teeth, “This is my pack. My library. My archive. What gives you the authority to question my presence in any establishment that belongs to the Jeon Pack?”
Jimin arches an eyebrow, “You’re back with your authority rant again, huh? Got nothing else to bitch about? You know what, why spare you the details? Remember when I called you DILF? It literally translates to, ‘ Daddy I’d Love to Fuck.’” He takes a step forward and closes the distance that the alpha only just created between them.
The omega stands on his tip toes so that he can be face to face with the alpha as he whispers, “Now would your authority allow that , Jeongguk-ssi?”
The way Jeongguk’s body reacts at those words thoroughly confuses the alpha. On one hand, he feels enraged at Jimin’s deflection, at his decision to not trust him with the truth. On the other hand, the words send a spark of arousal rushing through him, his alpha and instincts rearing their heads, leaving all rational thought behind. The alpha growls, “Omega, know your limits.”
Jimin’s familiar smile stretches in defiance, “Uhuh? Why don’t you show them to me? Put me in my place, alpha?”
Jeongguk feels the struggle between his human side and wolf side get perilous. It gets harder to think straight, keep himself sane when the omega’s one true mission is to push him to the brink of insanity. “Pup, you have no idea the waters you’re traversing. You’re asking to be drowned,” he warns.
“Now isn’t that exciting? The mystery, the uncertainty, the submission ,” Jimin whispers, voice husky and seductive, eyes hooded with lust and determination.
Jeongguk hates it so much, he wants to devour the omega, have him begging for mercy. It’s surely hatred with a passion, for he hasn’t yet experienced an emotion burning so intensely before. “Don’t be like this,” the alpha commands in a matching whisper.
“Like what,” Jimin chuckles and bites his lips. Jeongguk’s gaze follows the action and stays there, mesmerized by the lusciousness of the omega’s lips. Jimin’s voice, his scent, his vicinity, his attitude, everything seems to be working together like black magic to undo the alpha’s carefully built restraints, to crumble Jeongguk’s dutifully constructed walls.
“Like this, promiscuous ,” he answers, having little control over the hand that makes its way to Jimin’s neck to pull the omega closer.
The blonde man laughs heartily, getting comfortable in the alpha’s hold, “Can’t you be normal and call it flirting?”
This time, Jeongguk chuckles, “Funny hearing you talk about normalcy, Jimin-ssi. Since you walked into my life, there isn’t a semblance of it anywhere to be found.” Adrenaline and arousal rush through his veins, his heart racing as Jimin meets his eyes with heavy emotion and gulps.
“Not in how I feel, not in what I say…” Jeongguk looks back down at the omega’s lips seeking silent permission. Jimin glances at the alpha’s lips in turn.
“And certainly not in the things I do,” the alpha completes and pulls the omega’s mouth to his own. Their lips crash, like their ideologies do, with passion and ferocity, fighting for dominance in a bruising kiss.
Jeongguk feels himself melt into the omega’s embrace as tiny hands roam his body, pulling him impossibly closer to Jimin.
And Jeongguk goes. He closes as much distance as possible. He kisses Jimin as deeply as possible. He tastes him knowing he will need to savour it for long.
Long after his duties oblige him to rid his pack of the undivulged threat that hangs over them.
For Park Jimin tastes sweet . But he is, after all, an intruder – to Jeongguk’s conflicting heart, warring mind, and the Jeon Pack.