Chapter Text
Felix stared as Chan dipped another fry into the milkshake they decided to share on a whim.
"You know," Felix's wondering tone managed to distract Chan from the milkshake covered fry, "I've always wondered how our parents managed to know each other."
Chan raised one dark brow and Felix looked affronted.
"I meant despite the convoluted way of Uncle Youngjae being close friends with both your mum and dad. It's just weird."
Chan shrugged, "Well, I'll thank that weirdness whenever."
At this, Chan wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and making his fellow Aussie-born (boy)friend blush.
"Who's the greasy one here?"
Felix' deep offended voice made the elder laugh.
"'m sorry, babe. You're sometimes too good not to be teased."
Felix huffed at this. Then proceeded to flick Chan's forehead, "You're lucky I like you, Bang Junchan."
"Right back at cha, Im Jihyun."
If Felix didn't look like he'd hurl the sundae he had finished, he'd definitely would hurl it now on Chan's face after the greasy wink he delivered.
"How do you even manage to be this greasy? We're eating potatoes submerged and cooked in oil."
Chan merely replied with a, "Only for you, Jihyunnie."
Felix thinks that stealing Chan's milkshake covered fry served enough as retaliation.
"Hyung? How did mom and dad even know Auntie Hime and Uncle Yongguk?"
Im Joshua turned at the question of his youngest brother, "What do you mean?"
Felix flapped his hand in a "you know" gesture and Joshua laughed.
"If you must know Aunt Hime and mom knew each other because of your Uncle Youngjae-"
"I know that. I meant how'd they decide that "maybe our sons might be a good match for each other" agreement would end up really good and that they'd become that close to even decide that?"
And to this, Joshua sat himself beside his lounging brother. Grabbing Felix's long legs off one side of the couch, he situated himself on the recently vacated spot and dragged his brother's feet to rest on his lap.
"Why are you curious about it, Jihyun?"
Felix shrugged, enjoying the absent minded way his oldest brother massaged his sore feet from staying way too long on them at the office.
"Dunno. Curious? I mean it's just..." at this, Felix flapped his hand again, seemingly clueless as to how to word what he wanted to say, "I don't see Aunt Hime and mom getting along all that well?"
Joshua snorted, "You'd be surprised, honestly."
Felix yawned and Joshua continued massaging his brother's feet 'til he could hear the small soft snuffling that signaled his youngest brother had fallen asleep.
Quietly, Joshua carefully took a picture of the sleeping baby and sent a picture to Junhong.
[jun(zzz)elo]
shinisoo sent a photo
shinisoo: j unhongie, look at your future brother-in-law. isn't he adorable?
His phone vibrated not long after with Junhong's reply making him snort inelegantly.
[jun(zzz)elo]
zelololo: i think chan just choked on the miso soup mom made
Joshua tapped his pen on the mahogany desk his father gifted him when he had been promoted to being Im Industries American branch supervisor. Staring at the dazed executive, Seokmin lightly flicked his nose.
"Minnie!"
Seokmin chuckled and bent down to kiss the crinkling organ.
"I'm sorry, hyung, you looked like you were somewhere outside Earth."
Joshua squinted, mock annoyed at what his husband had said, "You could never even let me be distracted."
"Nope," was Seokmin's reply emphasizing on the "p".
Joshua hummed and sighed then continued tapping his pen.
Seokmin laughed and gently stopped the unconscious tapping of his husband's pen, "Oi, oi. None of that. I just brought you back."
Joshua smiled and held the hand resting atop his restless one.
"What's on your mind?"
"I dunno if I'm just being paranoid and what not, but Jihyun did ask how our parents and Chan's parents knew each other enough to arrange a sort of pact with each other."
Seokmin nodded sagely and decided to hop up to the (antique) desk, slightly disturbing some of the documents Joshua was supposed to concentrate on.
"Considering it was because of me that they decided to go through with that pact, I think you'd have every right to be paranoid... just a bit."
Joshua laughed at this, his husband's lackadaisical attitude towards anyone in their family knowing what they were was called for. Then again, Felix doesn't know.
"You can't read minds."
Seokmin shrugged, "I could ask Seungcheol hyung to tell me what doubts Felix has and we could go from there?"
Joshua rolled his eyes.
"That's violating my littlest brother's privacy."
Seokmin grinned.
"Worth a shot."
Joshua slapped his thigh, causing Seokmin to dramatically hold onto his thigh and stare in mock betrayal at him.
Laughing at his husband's antics always made Joshua feel lighter. No wonder Seokmin always did silly things to make him smile and laugh any chance he could get.
Sobering up but still smiling, Joshua sighed loudly.
"I'm just kinda scared, I guess?"
Sighing, Seokmin slid down and grabbed Joshua's chair. Spinning said chair to face him, he knelt down in front of the older and held onto his hands.
"Jihyun loves all of you. You know that, Shua," Joshua smiled and squeezed their joined hands, smile widening when the squeeze was returned.
"I know that."
A bit of quiet hummed through the office. The married couple enjoyed the love filled silence for a couple of moments
"Besides," Seokmin said, sotto voice, "he loves Yugyeom despite some of his questionable actions, most of the time."
"Seokmin!"
Laughing at his husband's scandalized voice, Seokmin kissed both of Joshua's knuckles.
"If Felix figures it out or your parents decided to tell him, he'll still love you all the same. Okay?"
Joshua smiled and sighed. "Okay."
"Alpha?"
Jinyoung's soft voice made Jaebum turn around. Jinyoung smiled, his natural form glowing after his nightly shower.
"Jinyoung ah," Jaebum smiled back, letting Jinyoung climb onto his lap and kiss his forehead.
"You good?" Jaebum huffed, amused at his bondmate's worry. This earned him a soft hit on his shoulder.
"I'm serious."
Jinyoung had always been ethereal and every time Jaebum looked at him, natural form or not, he'd always fall in love again.
Jaebum kissed the tip of Jinyoung's nose, "I'm good. Better now that you're here and in this form."
With that last remark, Jaebum gently squeezed Jinyoung's waist, "Still so beautiful and all mine."
Jinyoung smirked and kissed Jaebum, "You're mine, too, Alpha."
Jaebum carried Jinyoung to their bed with the last coherent phrase he'd ever say before the night ends, "Now and always, my beautiful Omega."
"I can't believe you'd legitimately decide to mate in Jinyoung's natural form, to be honest," Yi-en's handsome face shaped into wry amusement and slight disapproval, offset only with the artificial light from his laptop on the other side of the screen.
Jaebum, affronted at what his friend (and adviser) said, replied, "We've always made love in his natural form, Yi-en. Why in the world would last night make a difference?"
Yi-en laughed and laughed, Jaebum nearly growled in playful annoyance but the camera panned to another face.
"Because you're in Korea and your youngest, Im Jihyun, does not know that the entire family including him and his boyfriend have supernatural powers and most of them have been living for whoever's currently up there knows how long. Not to mention, Jihyun knows that his mom's name is Yoo Youngji and not Jinyoung, Beta and Omega bondmate of Unit G7's Alpha leader, JB of Sanctuary. So... he might have seen the two of you canoodling in the breakfast nook of your two-story penthouse in Gangnam the next morning and would have immediately thought that his dad has been cheating on his mom with a male lookalike because he doesn't know that some of the family can change their gender at will, among other things..."
"Jia-er, don't you ever shut up?"
Jinyoung, now in her mortal form: Youngji, squinted at the computer screen.
"Nope. Not really, nuna."
Youngji rolled her eyes.
"When Jihyun finds out, we'll make sure that he can process that information on his own terms," Jaebum stated, signing another document for Im Industries while at the same time reviewing the financial reports Jihyun had timidly passed to him.
Youngji huffed, "For all accounts, he's still a baby. You know that."
"Well, duh. He's, what? 18? That's a baby compared to your 10,000 years of existing," Yi-en's dry reply only made Jaebum chuckle in amusement.
Youngji looked offended enough that the CEO of Im Industries had to reread the entire page of the financial statement to avoid laughing at his wife. Crossing her arms in front of her chest, she narrowed her eyes at the video display of Yi-en's smug face.
"That's give or take. All I know is that I'm far older than the 2nd set of twins born to HEVN that is."
Jaebum snorted in amusement, "It's just a millenium's gap between the two of you, Youngji."
"Shut up. You're the same age as I am. Technically, Yi-en's older," was Youngji's affronted reply.
"Well, if we're going with technicalities. The two of you are far older than I am considering you both were born as gods already. I, on the other hand, had to be awakened. By the two of you, if you both recall."
Youngji looked at Jaebum, who had stopped signing and reading documents. Jaebum shrugged.
"He is somewhat right."
"...And now, we have Jia-er."
Jia-er's offended reply of, "why do you sound like I'm a big fat lot of trouble to you guys?!" was ignored.
Yi-en sighed and then turned his eyes to Jaebum, "I'll fax in the reports for both the American and Macau branches. The discrepancy Jihyun saw last month has been cleaned out and solved."
Jaebum raised his eyebrow then nodded.
"Good. We've got a joint video conference at 4 PM later. Don't be late, Yi-en."
Yi-en's handsome face turned indignant and the video call ended with Yi-en mumbling about tying Jia-er to a bedpost and leaving him there for the next couple of days.
"You do know it's because Jia-er's too nervous to join vid conferences that's why they always join late, right?"
Jaebum reached out to the hand Youngji had rested on his desk and patted it.
"I perfectly know, love."
Youngji rolled her eyes, "You and your pettiness."
Jaebum's feral grin only amused Youngji more.
"I'll be by again later for business proposals that the CEO needs to review."
And with that, the Vice President of Im Industries gave one last wave and a flying kiss before exiting the CEO's office.
"Love you!" Jaebum couldn't help but shout.
The door opened again and Youngji sent a wink, mouthing, "Love you, too," before shutting the door.
Jaebum went back to his actual work.
He loved his job(s).
"So what exactly is it that you do again?"
Felix sighed and looked at the mass of ebony black curls resting on the arm of his couch in his office.
"Chan, really?"
Said mass of black curls wavered and revealed Bang Junchan's grinning face.
"What? I was too distracted watching you animatedly talk about your job."
Felix snorted.
"Ugh, fine."
Chan immediately sat up, looking like the eager student finally paying attention to what his professor is lecturing.
Rolling his eyes, Felix began.
"As you know, I have a masters degree in business administration then I double majored in both Business Admin and Finance, Statistics and Economics so I have a degree for numbers," at this Chan nodded, "Good. So, that already clues you in as to what kind of job I do here."
"With numbers?"
Felix smiled, "Yup, with numbers. Basically, I deal with the financial side of Im Industries. I forgot to tell you this but I'm actually the Chief Finance Officer for Im Industries."
Chan blinked. Stunned and waiting for the punchline.
When no punchline came, he stared at Felix.
"You're serious."
"Yep."
"How does an 18 year old become a CFO for a huge company like Im Industries?"
""Cause he's a bloody genius in economics and financial management who managed to double major a business degree and finance degree," Yugyeom's sudden quip made Chan turn to him.
"Yugyeom hyung."
"Hi, Jihyunnie. I got those financial statements you submitted for the Korean branch. Youngjae reviewed it and I did, too. Brilliant work, as always."
Felix blushed and received the documents.
"Wait, wait. Did you just-?"
Yugyeom turned to Chan, "What?"
"That's the Queen's English!" Chan pointed at him.
"What? I can't speak the Queen's English now?"
Chan's dumbfounded look appeared to have amused Yugyeom. Felix hits his older brother with the documents in his hand.
"He stayed in Oxford for many, many years."
"Don't make it sound like I'm an academic, Jihyunnie."
Felix looked at Yugyeom in slight disgust, "As if you aren't."
Chan looked at Yugyeom, "Oxford?"
"Yep," Yugyeom answered, dragging the last sound out.
Turning to Felix, he handed him a tablet and "I need you to sign here."
"What's this for?"
"Joint vid conference at 4 PM."
"Ugh."
"I know."
"I haven't gotten a proper rest ever since I came back."
Yugyeom shrugged, "CFO troubles, little brother. CFO troubles."
Scoffing, Felix signed on the tablet and handed it back to Yugyeom, saying, "As if being the head of Operations doesn't have its own troubles."
Yugyeom grinned, "Perks of the job, maknae."
Waving the tablet, Yugyeom exited the CFO's office.
"Chan is invited to the family dinner later. Don't forget!"
Felix grumbled and went back to work.
While Chan...well, Chan just stared at the door and at his, apparently, genius boyfriend then flopped onto the couch.
"Your family is weird."
The rustling of papers told Chan that Felix was probably looking over the financial statements he had compiled, reviewing them for the conference later.
"Well, you haven't met Youngjae hyung and Jisoo hyung."
Chan only huffed in reply.