Chapter Text
It wasn’t unconventional for Alphas and Betas to be good friends, in fact it was encouraged. It is known that Betas are the ones that keep the Alphas sane and rational. Without Betas, many elders believe that the world would have never progressed. There wouldn’t be a society in which Alphas and Omegas have fairly similar rights and are treated with the same respect if Betas didn’t intervene and bridge the gap between the two. Many luxuries that are taken for granted would not have existed if Betas ceased to align themselves with Alphas to be more empathetic.
Which is why it’s not a surprise to anyone that Jeongguk’s friendship with Jimin has lasted this long. The younger was a Beta and quite happy with his sub-gender because two years prior, he’d found out that Jimin was an Alpha. Now it wasn’t to say that had Jeongguk presented differently that the two would have stopped being friends, it’s just that it wouldn’t have been as likely to last––according to society.
Jimin had been adamant from the start that he doesn’t give a rat’s ass about what society has to say about Alpha and Omega friendships. Who are they to say who he can and cannot be friends with? Did they know their dynamic? Were these people their parents?
No, to all of the above. They did not know their friendship better than themselves. Jimin almost challenged several elders in the pack, ready to defend Omegean rights. It was, once again, Jeongguk, who pulled him towards the lake for a swim, that diffused the tensions, sending scathing glares on his way out.
Their relationship was purely platonic, just like every other Alpha and Beta relationship that they knew. Despite them being much closer than other Alphas and Betas, but again, Jimin is the type that didn’t give a rat’s ass about how they come off to everyone else if he felt strongly about the thing that is being discussed.
However, everything suddenly become confusing when they entered university. Jeongguk is younger than Jimin, so he came to the city two years after Jimin had left the pack grounds.
– º•º –
It was a snowy January day, the sun swaddled by thick soft clouds as Jeongguk gets off the train with his luggage. Flurries float around him, settling in his hair and on his coat as he looks around for a familiar mop of blond or a familiar white fluffy hat. Just when he’s about given up finding his best friend, arms wrap around his waist from behind and instantly his lungs are filled with licorice and leather, a scent that has always brought him comfort growing up and holds the same comfort now.
Jeongguk spins around and hugs his best friend, burrowing his nose in the shorter wolf’s neck, nosing at his scent gland. Twinkling laughter rings in his ear as Jimin hugs him tighter to him.
“Missed you, pup.” The older male rasps, voice hoarse from the noraebang outing he had with some uni friends the night before.
“Not a pup anymore…” Jeongguk pouts, pulling away, staring down at Jimin. The elder’s cheeks had puffed up, his eyes twinkling crescents as he looked at Jeongguk with utter fondness. Jeongguk’s breath catches in his throat. When did his best friend get so attractive?
Jimin is opening his mouth to speak, when he’s interrupted by a taller male sidling up to him and kissing his cheek. Part of Jeongguk wants to growl and fight this other man for so casually kissing his Jimin hyung like that! It’s the lack of Jimin’s scent souring that has him giving pause.
“Jeonggukkie, I would like you to meet my boyfriend, Taehyung. I told you about him, right?” The young Beta raises a brow, confused.
“Didn’t you say that you hated his guts and wished that he would drown in the school fountain or worse; have to wet socks all day?” The snort of laughter that comes from beside Jimin is enough to tell him that Jeongguk was not in fact out of line. He always speaks first without thinking, a horrible trait he inherited from Jimin, really.
“Aish, you brat–” Jimin laughs, cheeks rosy as he looks in the opposite direction of the man with his arm around his waist. “I told you that before! We patched things up within the week that first year.” Jeongguk watches the fond look that is being sent towards his hyung and something squeezes his chest uncomfortably.
“I will admit, I was a complete jerk to you. The least I could have done was share the food instead of just gatekeeping it.” He laughs. The man’s attention shifts to Jeongguk, addressing him, “it’s a surprise that he even agreed to a date last night. I knew we were on good terms, but I didn’t know that it was good enough for him to say yes.”
The young Beta frowns. It was a date? He thought that Jimin would have told him if it was a date…plus it’s not like he’s jealous or anything! He’s just surprised that his best friend wouldn’t tell him that he went on a date.
“Well, Jimin hyung is fairly forgiving, but don’t think he’s forgotten,” Jeongguk laughs lightly, following after Taehyung and Jimin who had begun moving towards the exit of the station.
“Oh, I’m well aware, he got his revenge quite early on.”
The rest of the walk towards the parking lot was filled with laughs and casual conversation. Something about the easy way that Taehyung instantly included Jeongguk into whatever little universe that he had crafted with Jimin in the last two years warmed his heart. Even better was how he fit himself into the small world that Jeongguk and Jimin had created all those years ago. There was none of that awkwardness that is supposed to exist when one meets their best friend’s boyfriend for the first time.
Even that weird constricting of his chest had ebbed away into a pleasant feeling.
The car ride was an extension of their walk back to the car, a pleasant exchange of banter and commentary that didn’t stint itself, not even for a second. Someone was always picking the conversation up again before it fell flat.
– º•º –
Jeongguk had been staying at Jimin and Taehyung’s shared apartment for the month before his classes began and he could move into his own dorm. Part of him was glad that Jimin’s boyfriend was someone like Taehyung; a caring person who was attentive to the small changes in Jimin and was perceptive enough to make the right call whenever a change occurs.
Several times over the month, whenever Jimin was down, stressed or just spaced out, Jeongguk would rush to be at his side, but Taehyung was already there, soft words whispered in their bubble followed by a brief scenting. Jeongguk knew better than to watch every time, but something twisted in his gut. Something in him wanted Taehyung to look at him like that too.
So began his self loathing. The remaining time that he spent with the couple, he found those feelings of want and longing becoming more pronounced, simmering just below the surface; ready to overflow at any moment. It didn’t help that something had shifted in the air between Jimin and himself. Something that made Jeongguk want to simultaneously seek out the elder’s warmth, yet want to be closer.
Similar to how he felt about Taehyung, Jeongguk realized that underneath it all, there was a longing for Jimin too. Some part of him should feel relief at the fact that he wanted both and that he didn’t want to break them up; yet he feels even worse. How can he even like two people at the same time? Especially two people who are clearly happy with each other.
Thus the young Beta kept to himself, enough not to worry Jimin––who knew him like the back of his own hand.
The behaviour was not lost on Taehyung, however, who watched the way that the younger spaced out, curled in on himself, isolating himself from the couple whenever his presence wasn’t exactly necessary. If it was only Jeongguk, then perhaps Taehyung would have dismissed it, but Jimin’s change in attitudes was also clear to the younger Alpha.
He would stare after his best friend who would shy away from any touches, frowning momentarily when he thought that Taehyung didn’t notice. And Taehyung let him believe it.
He was a firm believer in never showing someone his full hand until he was sure that he was ready to have that confrontation. So he observed the two other inhabitants of the apartment.
The trio ended up living in this awkward tense, but not actually tense atmosphere for the remaining week that Jeongguk lived with the couple. It wasn’t that he hated it, it’s just that he could sense there was a shift between himself and Jimin, something that Jeongguk faults himself for. Maybe if he could have kept his feelings for both men in check, he wouldn’t be moving out with a ruined relationship between him and his Alpha best friend.
– º•º –
Jeongguk has been living in the uni dorms with a senior Alpha named Hoseok for almost a month now. The elder was quite helpful and knew his way around the campus, teaching Jeongguk the ins and outs of the establishment. A part of the young Beta felt like he was betraying his hyung by letting someone else show him around the campus when Jimin had promised that he would.
Jimin and Taehyung were a whole different matter. He’s been avoiding them whenever possible because he didn’t want to linger in that awkwardness that he had caused to settle around them. It was nice though, he could always text Jimin that he had assignments that required his attention, even though he was a first year English major and literally no one had assigned anything that required that much effort on his part.
It was something that Hoseok teased him about. Both he and his boyfriend were seniors at the uni. Jeongguk learned that Namjoon––the man with the glorious thighs that opened the door the first day he moved in––was as smart as he was fit. It wasn’t uncommon to hear Hoseok prattle on about how even his studious boyfriend studies less than Jeongguk.
“You know,” Hoseok says one day as they’re sitting at the table eating tteokbokki and ramen, watching some YouTube clips of a show they missed on air last night, “if you’re watching po––”
Even before the sentence is out of Hoseok’s mouth, the younger is choking on his food, trying to vehemently deny the false accusations. Meanwhile, the Alpha has his head thrown back in laughter, his whole body alight with glee at the reaction of the younger wolf. Despite the scathing glare sent his way, Hoseok’s glee does not disperse, not for a second.
“I have basic respect for all inhabitants of this dorm––I am not rubbing one out to fake moans while you are in the vicinity.”
“So you do it when I’m not here. Got it. I’ll make sure to go out more often.” Jeongguk’s cheeks darken as he groans. Hoseok was such a good natured person that he never took any of Jeongguk’s words to heart. Always jesting with the younger as if they were long time friends, even if that isn’t the case. The young Beta was thankful for that though, he had no idea what would have happened if Hoseok was all in his business and actually pried into his private life.
Don’t get Jeongguk wrong, he wanted to talk to someone about everything that was going on between him, Jimin and Taehyung, but he would like the opportunity to voluntarily offer that up to someone and not have them badger him for it. It’s not like he couldn’t tell that Hoseok was unaware of there being something wrong because Jeongguk is sure that the elder had an inkling that something was wrong. It was part of being an Alpha; being perceptive and attentive to those around them.
“You’re so–– gah how can you just say that???” Jeongguk whines. The older wolf just laughs, ruffling his hair as he gets up to go wash his plate.
“It’s just biology Jeongguk. It’s not something you need to be shy about or keep inside. All you need to do is exercise a little discretion in who you tell because some people can be immature and spin stories.” The younger blinks, well it’s not like he’s going to be announcing to the world that he is busting a nut to thoughts that are borderline taboo given the nature of the relationship he has with the people in his fantasies.
“I’m not going to tell everyone about me getting off or what gets me off, that’s just…they didn’t ask for it you know? Kind of like trauma dumping; you can’t just do that to someone without their implicit or explicit consent.” He brings another bite of the food up to his mouth as Hoseok cleans his plate, contemplating the Beta’s words.
“You’re right. At what point did we cross that threshold then?” He asks.
“Probably when you walked into the bathroom when I was showering.”
“That was on you my boy. You didn’t lock the door.”
“I thought the door being closed was telling enough!” Jeongguk laughs, defending his logic.
The alpha wipes his hand on the dish cloth they kept in the kitchen, shaking his head amused. “Do you have any siblings? If you do then you and your sibling must be really nice with each other and didn’t annoy each other.”
“My older brother is only two years my elder, so we basically grew up together. That’s not to say I don’t irritate him, but he is pretty patient with me.” Hoseok hums, as if that was the answer to everything and he supposes, in a way, it is.
“Well that explains why you have no sense of preservation.” Jeongguk rolls his eyes, polishing off his lunch. “I have class in 10, Namjoon might come over to get a textbook after I leave so until he comes, you’ll have to sit tight.” Hoseok apologizes.
“That’s fine, I didn’t have plans to go out anyways really.” The Alpha raised a brow but didn’t say anything else. He has said more than he should have today anyways.
“Alright. Let me know if we’re all still on for dinner. Namjoon’s brother is paying and he wants to get to know Namjoon and all his friends. Plus, I hear their cousin is coming as well. Namjoon always says that his immediate younger cousin barely sees them since they never really grew up together. Even in uni, they barely cross paths, despite being the same major.” Jeongguk raises a brow, impressed that it was possible to avoid people on campus without actively trying to avoid them.
“Yeah, I’m on, don’t worry about me. I need to make new friends anyways. No offence, but you’re graduating soon and I won’t have anyone once you leave. Maybe if I acquaint myself with Namjoon hyung’s cousin, I will have someone to keep me company for another year or so.” Hoseok waves him off, knowing that Jeongguk didn’t mean anything malicious by his statement.
“Alright, I’m off then. See you later kid!” Hoseok calls out, leaving the dorm with his backpack and his travel mug.
Not even a minute after he’d left, Jeongguk gets a text from the one person that he was trying to avoid.
Today 13:16 | Mimi Hyung
Can we talk?