Chapter Text
It was late evening when everyone was home.
Yeosang had at one point cornered Seonghwa and demanded the alpha let him see what he smells like while claiming his lap. He had of course complied, albeit skeptically.
“Woah! Hyung, you smell like everyone too!” Yeosang said as he surfaced from Seonghwa’s neck making him blush. “But, you don’t... Why don't you have mine?” the innocent question made the alpha sputter.
“Hongjoong! What have you been teaching him? You come home early once and you tell him about— about...” He groaned, unable to finish. He turned to the alpha who was laying upside down on the sofa in a tank top and sweats and doodling on his iPad.
“Hyung said I can ask you to scent me if I want to smell like you.” Yeosang interjected.
Seonghwa closed his eyes and pinched his nose bridge with his thumb and forefinger. “Give me a minute, baby.”
He swatted at Hongjoong, slapping the closest part that he could reach, which was the alpha’s exposed upper arm. “Kim Hongjoong. You bastard! You corrupted him!”
“Ouch! That hurt!” he rubbed the spot with a pout. “And no, I didn't. He wanted the comfort of everyone’s scents so I showed him that a pack smells like each other and told him that he can smell like you all if you scent him. That’s all I did.” He concluded.
“Oh.” Was Seonghwa's clever reply.
“Yeah, oh.” Hongjoong side eyed him with narrowed eyes and tsked. “Pervert,” he said under his breath and went back to his iPad.
Seonghwa turned to Yeosang who was watching the exchange with a confused expression.
“Right,” he nodded to himself. “So, I can do that, baby. But you have to understand that it goes away after some time, okay?” Yeosang nodded, his full attention now on Seonghwa. “We can start with that in case you don't want it to be too overwhelming. How does that sound?” He brushed Yeosang’s bangs away from his eyes and waited for a response.
“Sounds good.” The omega nodded again, his brows furrowing in thought.
“Anything on your mind, hmm?” Seonghwa kept his hand in Yeosang’s hair, the pads of his fingers gently messaging the younger boy's scalp.
“Hyung,” Yeosang started with a shaky voice. “So...” He shifted on Seonghwa’s lap nervously. “But you still won’t smell like me.”
Hongjoong, who was silently listening to the conversation, subtly knocked his knee on Seonghwa’s arm in encouragement.
“That's fine. You can scent me if that is what you want too.” He smiled at the omega. “Then we can smell like each other, yeah?”
“I want that too.”
And that was how Seonghwa immediately found himself with a lapful of Yeosang.
It was perhaps because Seonghwa had been wanting this for so long but it was intoxicating, the feeling of Yeosang’s scent flooding his pores and soaking his lungs with caramel so much that he could taste it on his tongue. The eldest knew that it was the second time Yeosang scented someone but he was so good at it already and it was obvious how much joy the omega found in such a simple act. He was rubbing away at Seonghwa’s skin, his hands splayed on either side of his neck as he nosed at the alpha’s scent glands between licks, featherlight kisses and nibs.
Their youngest continued exploring the alpha’s skin to his heart’s content, the latter staying as still as possible to not disturb what seemed to be a really important task to Yeosang seeing that he was adamant on making Seonghwa smell like him and he needed to do it right.
The alpha simply reclined his back on the sofa cushions and hugged the omega closer to him with one hand splayed on Yeosang’s back, the other reaching out for the remote to find something to watch while Yeosang got used to having his scent on another person.
It wasn’t until Seonghwa was halfway through an episode of the drama he was watching that Yeosang finally pulled from his hideout with a drowsy smile on his lips.
“I like this.” He purred, hugging Seonghwa impossibly tight.
“No shit.” Came Wooyoung's reply from his perch on the other end of the sofa, with a pointed eyeroll when Yeosang startled at the unexpected addition.
The other omega had at one point joined them in the living room to work on an essay because he preferred company while he studies and the tv was enough background noise for him to focus.
“You’ve been all but moaning into hyung's neck for the past ten minutes that I've been here.” He scoffed, giving the two of them a disgusted look. “And seeing the state you both are in, I can only assume that you've been at it for longer.” He shook his head with a sigh and went back to his homework.
Seonghwa’s hair sticking out in all directions from Yeosang’s hands that have been running through it unconsciously and Yeosang's dazed look and flushed cheeks were enough proof that he had a point.
“Wooyoung,” the eldest warned giving said male a pointed look. “It's Yeosang’s first time experiencing something like this so be kind, yeah?” His voice was gentle even when he was scolding.
Wooyoung huffed, a pout on his lips as he looked up and apologized for being mean. “It's just that..” he trailed off, scratching the back of his hair in embarrassment, “..you look cute, Sangie.”
Seonghwa sighed at the confession. It was typical of Wooyoung to react like that out of jealousy and lace it with annoyance and disgust instead of openly stating that he wanted Yeosang to scent him too.
Instead of scolding Wooyoung some more, the alpha focused his attention back on Yeosang who was fighting sleep with every blink.
Wooyoung cooed from his place on the carpet when Yeosang yawned and leaned on Seonghwa’s chest, all but ready to fall asleep then and there.
“Hey, baby.” Seonghwa peaked at the omega's face, “you can't sleep just yet. You need to eat something first.” He said, receiving a huff in reply.
“I'm not hungry, hyung.” The omega kept his eyes closed, relaxing his body with a hum. “I already ate with Jongho hyung and Hongjoong hyung.”
Seonghwa turned to check with Hongjoong only to find the alpha already dozing off, his iPad abandoned while he was curled into a ball and snoring softly.
He works too hard, Seonghwa couldn't help but think. He figured he should just let the two nap when they were already well fed and this exhausted.
“You can sleep, love.” He patted Yeosang’s hair. “You'll be more comfortable laying down, though.” Glancing at Hongjoong to see if he could fit Yeosang in his arms, Seonghwa decided to put the youngest between the alpha and the back cushions of the couch where he laid down without protest. He draped a blanket over the two and left them to rest.
He stopped behind Wooyoung to ruffle the omega’s hair, pausing when he noticed how tense the younger was.
“Wooyoung?” He knelt down when the omega didn't give a response. “What's wrong?”
“This stupid homework.” Was all he said before continuing to type away furiously on his keyboard.
Seonghwa frowned, his hand automatically finding Wooyoung’s back to rub soothing circles on it. The gentle gesture made the omega's typing pace falter before he stopped completely and buried his face in his hands.
“Wooyoung...” With the omega releasing distressed pheromones, Seonghwa couldn't help but get worried. “Please tell me what is bothering you. Hyung can help.”
Wooyoung simply shook his head. “This class is hard and it's stressing me out. That's all it is, hyung. Don't worry about it.”
Those words had the exact opposite effect and Seonghwa was starting to get really worried. Whatever Wooyoung was not telling him was more important than he was letting on.
“Okay.” He started. “I understand that. I trust that you can figure it out but don't overwork yourself, Woo. Hyung believes in you.”
Wooyoung looked up at him with a megawatt smile lighting his face. “Thanks for saying that, hyung.”
Seonghwa nodded with a smile and straightened his back. “Of course, baby. I'm always here.” He will just make sure to check on him later when he comes back to wake the two sleeping on the couch in case they didn't on their own.
Moving to his room, he intended to pull out a change of clothes to put on after a shower, but got distracted by a basket full of clothes that he needed to fold and place in his closet. Someone must have brought it from the laundry room.
Seeing that it wasn't often that he used the room to sleep, it mainly served as a place to store his belongings, but he did his best to keep it tidy.
Not even ten minutes later, he was surprised by Yeosang coming in with a pout while he rubbed the sleep from his eyes. He stopped midway through folding a sweater in favour of accepting Yeosang into his arms.
“I fell from the couch, hyung.” The omega laced his arms around his waist and buried his face into his chest.
Letting out a sigh, Seonghwa tightened his hold around the omega.
“Did you get hurt?”
There was a small nod and a mumbled “hit the table” that he almost missed.
“Where?” He pulled away and put the sweater away to free his hands. “Show me, baby.”
Yeosang looked barely awake as he blinked slowly at him, Seonghwa’s words taking him so long to register. When he did, he pulled up his shirt and pointed at his side, not even noticing the bruising there.
“Oh, Sangie.” He gasped at the sight and reached out a hand to cup Yeosang’s side, brows knitting when the omega whimpered.
He focused his gaze on Yeosang’s face. “It hurts, baby, doesn't it?” Yeosang nodded, tears prickling his eyes.
Hongjoong chose that moment to walk in, his hair ruffled and looking tired. The sight of a teary-eyed Yeosang making alarm bells go off in his mind.
“What's wrong, Seonghwa-yah?” He asked as he walked up to them.
Seonghwa sighed and pressed up against Yeosang, the omega leaned on him in response.
“I thought I left Yeosang with you to nap.”
Hongjoong frowned, not understanding why the other was upset. “You did?” He had no idea. “What happened?”
Seonghwa sighed in frustration. He opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Yeosang.
“It's not his fault, hyung.” He started. “I wanted to get up because.. I had a nightmare, it was dark so I couldn't see and I- I fell and—”
“It's okay, Sangie.” Seonghwa reassured, noticing how Yeosang was starting to get worked up. “You’re going to be okay.” He looked up at the other alpha when he saw him approach, grateful that he had the presence of mind to drape himself over Yeosang’s back in an attempt to calm him.
The hug seemed to work. Their youngest relaxed in Hongjoong’s hold and, through no conscious effort from either, welcomed Hongjoong's scenting. The alpha was releasing his comforting scent to counter Yeosang’s distressed pheromones.
“I'll get some ice.” He said softly and left the two to wrap a pack of frozen peas in a kitchen towel. A glance at the living room revealed to him that Wooyoung had emptied the table from his belongings and was no longer there. Maybe he'd left right after him.
In the meantime, Hongjoong took a seat on the bed and brought Yeosang with him who had all but turned into mush. He was either too sleepy or too affected by Hongjoong's pheromones, the alpha didn't know for sure but accepted Yeosang onto his lap.
Seonghwa returned with the ice and handed it to Hongjoong after showing him how to keep it on the omega’s bruised side. He got back to his pile of clothes after that, keeping an eye on the two just in case.
Hongjoong did as he was told and held the towel to Yeosang's skin for five minutes, all the while making sure that the youngest was comfortable, which he didn’t seem to be at all even though he kept saying he was.
The alpha couldn't help but notice how he kept fidgeting. It got pretty bad when Seonghwa began changing the pillowcases after swapping the sheets for washed ones and the pile of used linens began growing by the foot of the bed.
“Hyung,” Yeosang started and turned in his arms to face him, “Hyung, I'm going to be sick.”
Seonghwa must have heard him. Before Hongjoong could react, he had moved the sheets away and ran over to open the window widely.
“It must be our scents, baby.” He walked up to them with his arms outstretched as if ready to pick Yeosang up but then hesitated and studied his hands. “And detergent..”
“Should we stay in the living room, baby?” Hongjoong stood up with Yeosang in his arms and waited for a reply while he walked out of the room. “Sangie?” He called for the omega’s attention when he was crossing the living room and passed by the fireplace, noticing how the crackling of the flames caught the boy's full attention.
At the sound of Hongjoong calling his name, Yeosang snapped from his trance and blinked up at the other male, only then registering that he never answered, too caught up dreaming of sitting out in the garden around the fireplace with the others. The image of him bundled up in blankets and sitting on someone’s lap while the stars ahead witnessed their conversations and playful banter playing in his fancy.
It was a memory, Yeosang realised belatedly. He wanted to do it again.
“Can we sit in the balcony?” he asked tentatively, not sure if Hongjoong would agree.
“It’s freezing out there, baby.” The alpha cast a quick glance at the sliding doors then looked back at him. “Maybe we can tomorrow afternoon, when it's less windy and after the rain stops.”
He nodded dejectedly. Maybe. But he already knew that they wouldn't be able to.
Hongjoong was going to be busy the next day and he would forget to ask the others to stay with Yeosang if he didn't make it by noon.
But it was okay. He can sneak out when everyone is asleep to sit outside and savour the crisp night air, especially if it keeps raining.
For now though, he wanted to sit somewhere that wasn’t too hot, where he could breathe easily without worrying about overwhelming scents.
“I'll go to my room, hyungie. I'm tired.” And he was. It had been a long day, even if he hadn’t done anything tasking, and he couldn't wait to crack open the windows and rest his body for a bit before everyone goes to bed so he can sit outside.
“Do you want to be alone, baby?” Hongjoong asked, already making his way up the stairs.
It was obvious to him that Yeosang was overwhelmed with their scents and any added smell was making him on edge. The prospect of sitting in his own room with only his scent present seemed like a good solution for the omega.
Yeosang was considering Hongjoong's words. On one hand, he wanted Hongjoong to stay with him until he could fall asleep, maybe even after he falls asleep so he’d actually rest, not toss and turn for hours. On the other hand, he wanted to stay up a bit longer to go through with his plan for the night, even for an hour or two, seeing how tired he was, before coming back to get some sleep.
Glancing around the room once they entered, he felt uncomfortably cold. It looked desolate and grey, not the kind of haven he wished to spend hours in alone or with company.
Once he was put on the bed, he watched the alpha switch off all the lights but the lamp on his bedside table and crack open the window like he asked. Then when Hongjoong headed to the door, he swallowed the urge to hold his sleeve to keep him from going or ask him to take him somewhere else, instead he burrowed deep in his covers and watched the alpha’s retreating back with surrender.
He wasn’t sure how it happened, maybe he was more tired than he thought, but the next thing he registered was his eyes reluctantly blinking open. He had no idea how he ended up falling asleep, but something must have woken him up because he could barely keep his eyes open.
Just when he began to drift off again, there was a rumble of thunder accompanied by a gust of wind, strong enough that it sent the window smacking against the wall. He startled awake at the sound and sat up quickly, just in time for another thunderclap booming through the air. The rumbling that followed lasted for several long moments that sent him shivering.
“Hyung?” he called, not to anyone in particular, but to anyone who could hear him. Sleeping alone was a terrible idea. He was terrified.
Thunder was one of his least favourite things and he could handle it like a big boy until it got too loud. The thunderstorm raging outside was definitely one of the loudest he had ever witnessed. He could hear it pouring cats and dogs, the whistling wind and thunder were rattling his heart.
“Hyung…” he whimpered in the seconds of stillness that the flash of lightning gave him before another crack of thunder shook the house, loud even though he covered both ears with his hands.
He squeezed himself against the headboard, not daring to step foot outside of bed, even if it was the logical thing to do to seek someone’s company. He made sure to keep his hands over his ears and closed his eyes, full body shivers racked his frame as he prayed that it would stop.
And it eventually did. There was no more thunder but the rain kept on pouring heavily. It still allowed him some reprieve and he sat up, no longer cowering under the covers and dared to make his way towards the window to shut it tight and prevent more wind from coming in. He realised that he should have closed it sooner to keep the cold and rain out, but he really didn't have a chance to do so any earlier. He did have to quickly mop the floor under the window, though, where raindrops managed to pool and threatened to wet the rug a few feet away.
The whole house was asleep, he realised once he stepped out of the room and into the thankfully lit hallway. Understandably so, it was 04:08 in the morning. Sometimes, either Yunho or Hongjoong would be awake, and on some rare times Seonghwa. Playing games, working, or in Seonghwa's case, watching something in the living room when sleep escaped him.
There used to be a time when Yeosang himself would stay up all night, his sleep schedule had been messed up and he would sleep once the sun rose. He did so for days on end because he was getting night terrors each time and sleep paralysis was at its worst at night. He might not have had the best sleep but it was leagues better during the day. Something about it being light outside and the sun up to keep guard over him brought him enough comfort that he didn't struggle as much as when he tried, and failed, to get a good night's sleep.
Yeosang reminded himself as he retrieved a mop and bucket from where Seonghwa stashed their cleaning supplies, that it had been almost a year since that last happened and that he was in a much better state lately. There might still be times, like earlier in the evening, when he gets assaulted by visions and memories when he least expects it, but they were no longer incessant even if they tended to be as vivid as ever. Time put some distance between him and the faces, places, smells, sensations and words from back then and for that, he was grateful. For the simple fact that it was all in the past and will remain so.
He might not have talked about it, he might never will and he did not know where to start if he ever did, he might not have processed everything as well as he should to move on and be truly okay, but he was in a better state and with wonderful people he considered family in a place he could finally call home. He wouldn't dare ask for anything more, least of all burden them with anything he had gone through for the simple reason that they have been giving him more than he dreamed of having, and that was enough for him.
It didn't take him long to dry the floor and put everything back in its place before moving to wash his hands. He caught sight of the hamper in the mirror and he turned towards it as he dried his hands with a towel, a thought already forming in his head. The worst thing that could happen would be Seonghwa unable to find his sheets to do the laundry and be mad, the others would probably not even notice their missing clothes.
With that thought in mind, he climbed up the stairs, making an effort to pay extra attention to each step so as not to make noise or drop anything from the pile he held in his arms.
Once back in his room, he put everything on his bed and went back to the door to gently shut it close. He separated the sheets from the pile and bunched them up into a U shape, alternating between the ones that were already on his bed and Seonghwa’s, until they formed the wall of his nest. He then placed shirts and hoodies on either side of him so that they were the closest when he laid down. Mingi's fuzzy jacket went last, a lovely surprise he found in the hamper and it fit just right to hug to sleep instead of his usual pillow or comforter. By that point, he was buried under the mix of covers and fabrics from ragtag clothing items, the cold and storm a faraway worry as he got comfortable and let the softness of the jacket and toasty warmth guide him to dreamland.