Chapter Text
ASTRAY
You realise you have no idea what happened last night.
You remember waking up from a nap after coming back from your classes and getting ready…to do what? You were supposed to…go to the party, you think. Yes, you remember WooYoung and his friend Yeosang made you promise you’d show up. Because they were going to…hmmmm….right, they had to discuss something with Kim Seungmin. So the Strays were supposed to be there. So you could probably hang with Chan or Bin. But nothing else comes to your mind. It’s a void. It’s just an empty space.
Your head feels pillowy as you enter the bathroom and find yourself in front of the sink with a mirror that is desperately waiting for some much needed cleaning up from all the splashes.
Then you see it. You see it before you feel it. The bite. It’s a white mark of a pair of teeth. Licked to healing after somebody dragged their canines into your flesh.
One of them bit you…and that can only mean one thing.
You’re mated.
To one of that pack. You know it’s one of them. There are only two packs on campus. Surely this bite in nothing anyone of your brothers has done! It’s your wolf sense and the lingering smell you can faintly detect on yourself: familiar but at the same time so…new.
Without your consent. The bite was without a consent? Is that even possible? And that the little shit Hyunjin wiped your memories clean. It wouldn’t have been Seungmin. Not because he’s pumping out nobility on daily basis but because mind manipulation is not his area of expertise. Stupid warlocks! Or was it that little fae that is side kicking them, Jeongin or something? From the Yangs who were destroyed years ago except for one surviving line…Well if that really was him that line will have no survivors this time! Nah, the kid is afraid to even make eye contact with you. The whole thing is less than possible.
What the actual fuck?!..
Think….just think…Calm down for a second and think.
It’s not Chan, no way, no. He’s Chan, of course it wasn’t him!
Changbin…doubtfully, you are buddies and he’s simply hardly interested.
Felix and Han are both betas.
And that leaves only one option. Only one werewolf.
Fuck, you’ve fucked with Lee Minho. Fucking Lee Know. Shit. Fuck. Shitfuckfuck
And suddenly you recognise the scent.
You’re so screwed.
.
“Took you long enough.” You can’t really determine if his voice is apathetic or dismissing because when you burst into their house and up the stairs straight to his room, Minho is standing his back to you, closing his laptop that is deposited right in the middle of a wooden table, his workspace.
“Are you out of your fucking mind?!?” You all but scream. You must be a sight to see: hair frying in all directions, in your running shoes with the first jeans and a t-shirt you got your hands on, a long coat to help where the thin t-shirt can’t fight off the wind.
“I can explain.” He sighs, turning to face you. And to your relief, at least he looks exhausted as well with not an ounce of the trademark assholish smirk on his face.
“Can you!?”
“Well no but…"
“Why the fuck would you let Hyunjin erase my mind, it’s not like I wouldn’t understand it was you. Jees Minho….we’re mated! What the hell? It’s not a game anymore.” Your eyes are wide, breathing rapid.
“I fucking know it’s not a game!” He barks back but doesn’t attempt to come closer and right now it’s probably the only right choice he can make.
“Then what the fuck?? I don’t understand…”
“I just wanted more time…” He says and you still don’t understand. More time for what? How in the freaking hell are you suppose to interpret this?!
Instead you hiss dangerously. “I want my memories back.”
“He can’t do it.” Minho informs, voice calm but flat.
“Can’t or won’t?”
He produces another dragged sigh and sends his hand through the rich mess of his light hair but he ignores the question all together.
“What now?” It’s weird to hear him ask. He’s the Alpha, he always tells everybody else what to do, what he wants. Maybe it’s the anger emitting from you or his guilt or whatever it is you can’t be sure but he seems overly careful at the moment, with you.
“Guess what? I’m moving in, asshole! The bond isn’t settled yet. Otherwise we probably die.”
“Definitely die.” He agrees with a shrug.
“You’re such….I can’t believe it!” Hands in the air, you turn on your heels and storm out of the door sending it flying shut.
“Yeah…me neither.” Minho mutters to himself. His head is pounding too from the amount of alcohol from yesterday night. But there are more pressing matters at hand.
“Bin! Bin, wake up! I need your help with the boxes!” He hears your voice from couple rooms down the hall and a little smirk tugs at the corner of his lips: asking Changbin to help move your things instead asking him, your mate. You must be bathing in anger. He’s actually impressed you didn’t try to claw his eyes out.
Then he sighs again.
.
You go to WooYoung.
As soon as you move and the ‘awkward’ is settled around the house at least for the first 48 hours, you go to your old pack’s friend, WooYoung. He’s a warlock as well, he must know what to do.
He does and you don’t like what he has to tell you: “I cannot reverse the spell, it’s a very personal magic. Probably Hwang channeled it through your mate, makes it almost impossible for me to reverse it.”
Your head rolls back dramatically. But you’re really lost… You know you cannot unbond someone, it’s a doctrine, you’re taught about it from birth basically.
But you want your memories! You want what’s yours, what belongs to you. Because right now you only feel frustrated, angry and robbed. How exactly is this fair? “Isn’t there anything you could do?”
“Well…” You think it’s the first time you’ve ever seen the cheerful party boy WooYoung this serious. “Essentially he didn’t take your memories, this is just a powerful block. What I can do is try to relax your mind enough so that you could at least get some glimpses of what’s missing. I can’t guarantee if that will work but it might.”
“Please, do it.”
WooYoung nods and offers you to lay down on the sofa while he stands over your head, his fingers barely touching your temples. You take last look at his face marred with concentration and close your eyes as your head starts feeling light and worm.
.
“Can I ask you something?” You say as soon as you’re back to the pack house.
Well you’re about to enter when your mate is exiting.
He looks at you suspiciously for a second. Weighing his options and the possibility of another scandal he swiftly nods for you to enter. The house seems empty which is unsettling…a bit. With nine people living here, it’s kinda scary when the house is devoid of any presence.
“What is it?”
“I remember things from that night.”
He looks up, surprise colouring Minho’s gaze even just for a moment.
“Then I guess Hyunjin isn’t as good as he likes to brag.” Is all he says.
You really find it hard to believe he is acting this way. What? That’s it? Nothing more to say?
“Why did you do it? Why ask him to wipe my mind If we both wanted it? Why would you lie?” There’s literally a million questions in you.
"We were drunk.” Is your answer and Minho goes to stand by the window. “Way too drunk.”
“So you decided everything on your own…” You feel your voice losing any mercy you used to hold for this situation.
“I decided to spare you the torture of a wrong choice. It’d be better if you just blamed me.” His voice is now sharper too.
“Our whole life? Is that what you want?….”
He doesn’t answer.
“Sure…I’m a little voiceless omega so you decided to play the big authority alpha.” You’re mocking now but you can’t do anything - the ridiculousness of the situation is skyrocketing by this point.
There’s a dangerous growl from within Minho but you aren’t afraid. You’re glad there’s some kind of reaction at all. You are unceremoniously undermining his status by throwing those words straight to his face with no fear. But this time you’re not about to silence yourself. If you’re honest, you never really were one of those omegas to do so. If by fate and whoever choice that was you two are one, mates, he will have to treat you as such, as equal.
Traitorous tears are pricking at your eyes because you are insulted and mad but you use the palms of your hand to quickly get rid of them before they have a chance to fall.
Minho’s jaw is set when you turn back to him and it takes all of his willpower to not kill you for the disrespect and to not hold you impossibly close because you’re his mate in distress.
“Know your place. You are my mate now , until one of us dies we are bound, so regardless of what your subgender is from now on you’re a future luna of my future pack. Act like one.”
You are really close to biting back and telling him that you can organise the ‘until one of us dies’ part. Your cousin is in the Bantan pack and he literally adores you. You are not related by blood per say but your uncle married his mother when their respective mates had died, and you couldn’t ask for a better cousin than Jungkook, the two if you hit it off right from the get go.
Instead you just bite your tongue.
“And do not forget that I’m firstly your Alpha so show me respect.” Voice is a dangerous venomous whisper, chest puffed almost to a point that it’s touching your own. “Am I making myself clear, Y/N?”
Your head is high and you don’t want to submit but the mark in a form of his teeth in the junction between your neck and shoulder burns and every single thing you’re used to and know like a prayer is crushing you from the inside.
You close your eyes for a second and take a deep breath. When they open again he’s still staring you down. You only let a tiny nod but it’s enough for him.
You submit. Unwillingly, he knows, but you do. Deep down he wishes that as his mate you would be doing it out of desire but he’ll take what he can. For now.
“Good girl.” He says and you're able to lift your head and move again.
You hate him with vengeance.
First month fly by and by the end of it it’s hard to remember how you lived before (though you’re still very close with Mingi, Hongjoon, San and Jongho, this will never change).
The pack accepts you without a question or a condition. You were always close with Chan and had good relationships with Changbin and Felix, others you didn’t really see that much. But they just accept you like you’ve always been there. Like you’re a part of Minho which…you are, and no matter how hard for you it still is to understand it.
Breakfast on Saturdays all together is a tradition. With pancakes.
Bickering with Hyunjin is an everyday ritual, like breathing. And you can’t detect a moment when it becomes something you miss if you don’t bump into each other till evening.
Cooking dinner with Felix. Listening to Han whine about the girls he tries go chasing. Catching Jeongin stealing cupcakes from refrigerator at 3 in the morning. Hitting the gym with Bin. Sharing a silent understanding with Seungmin when you take your places on the opposite sides of the leaving room to have some quiet time to read with the presence of one another.
You only miss Chan. You used to hang out a lot more. But he is busy with classes and his music.
As for Minho…
You sleep in one bed every night.
At first everything was angering, awkward, uncomfortable….then it just changed and rather fast, if you’re honest with yourself.
You’re still rather low on communication but you would be oblivious to not notice, to not feel your bond.
First nights you used to sleep back to back. In one bed only because you had to. As time shifted so did your forms on the mattress. You would wake up with one of his hands hanging around your waist or with your arm of his chest, the positions would vary every morning. When you had to leave first you’d be extra quiet so he wouldn’t have to wake up. If the roles were reversed, at one point you started finding a cup of coffee on the night stand on your side of the bed when it was time for you to wake up.
Truth is your mate turned out to be a lot not what you expected if you’re even sure what you’ve expected.
You sometimes catch yourself watching him doing things around the house, or working on his laptop with glasses almost sliding from his nose, or being extra strict with Hyunjin who likes to slack, while on the other had extra patient with Jeongin explaining the corse Minho’s already had in the university two years before.
But one thing was still nagging at you like poisonous arrow stuck somewhere between your ribs. It left a bitter taste in your mouth and made you turn your head away every time you’d catch his eyes on you.
Until that day…
“I think you’re lying to me, little girl, and to yourself.” The warlock laughs mockingly after you say “no things” to his question of “how are things with your mate?”.
“Yah! It’s Noona for you asshole!” Your eyes might as well drip fire at the moment. The nerve of that one!
Hyunjin grimaces but holds his tongue, it’s true - you are a year older.
“S..ry….noona…” It’s mumbled but you want a real apology.
“Can’t hear you.”
“Sorry.” He scowls. “Noona.”
“That’s more like it.”
“For someone who doesn’t want to be a pack luna you act suspiciously like one.” He huffs and sits back down on the sofa, creating a little more distance between you. An utterly dramatic move.
“I never said I didn’t want to be a luna…” You start.
“Not with him?” He interrupts.
“I just ….we don’t really work. I can feel through the bond that he doesn’t trust me. At least not enough to …” You honestly have no idea why you’re telling him this. Are you friends now? Maybe you are? How is it you’re not sure about such a huge amount of things nowadays.
“I kinda think you’re both fools in love. But you…You never knew how to properly express it though. You know when you asked Chan to help you through your first two heats I thought your mate would rip his head off even though they’ve always been brothers.” Your mouth falls a little. This is a brand new information. “Chan said after that you were… like friends, that heats and ruts didn’t change anything between you. I think only this held Minho back, that there were no feelings involved on your part.”
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“Well, Noona, it might be a surprise for you but when we had no one this pack accepted us. Me and Seungmin, even though we are of an entirely different kind. We were pretty lonely. Especially me since Min is really reserved, he enjoys his solitude. Sometimes I think more to spite me but… They took us into the family and never treated us like we did not belong. So….it kinda saddens me how the two of you act when I know the truth…”
“Truth?” You parrot but your eyes are trained on him. You think you know where he’s going with this but you want to hear the confirmation from Hyunjin himself.
“WooYong wouldn’t be able to reverse my cast even if he wanted too. The fact that he could open even shades of your memories to you is impressive enough, I suppose.”
“He said it’s because you’ve used Minho’s bond to me…”
“I did. But it’s not why that silly thing couldn’t reverse it. I’m just better!” He looks overly excited.
You clear your throat a little. “It really looks like you want me to praise you. I’ll ask: seriously?”
“Ok, you’re right. Where was I? Oh. If I used Minho’s bond (which I did) he could use your bond to reverse it because you share the same bond and the strength of that bond is the same from both ends.” His words actually make sense. “He couldn’t do it because he sucks! And because I put the rune protection charms on the cast itself, isn’t it genius??”
To be honest, you are pretty impressed but right now you have a question that cannot wait anymore.
“Huynjin, you…you’ll give them back to me?” It’s a breath of a sound but he hears.
“I’ll unlock them, if you really want it.” He says and you can see he’s completely honest.
You nod.
“After this, Noona, there will be no shield to hide behind.” He warns softly.
You nod again.
You get what you want.
.
It was raining that night. All day and straight into the night.
You were with WooYoung and Yeosang at the party. Not really willing to stay long.
After half hour you found two more people who shared a sentiment of not wanting to stay but each seemed to have a reason for delaying the departure.
Somehow you, Minho and a guy named Bobby ended up with two bottles of Jack to share.
You already knew Minho. You met a couple years back and if somebody would put a gun to your head you still would not admit that you were taken with him back then. Not because of his looks though that department was all set for him as well. It was something else, something intangible. As if there was something in the air around him. But he never tried to befriend you or…anything else. And you simply let go of that notion. You were civil with each other but there were moments when you came over to hang out with Chan or Changbin when you could swear that your every word was a trigger to let the assholish part of Minho out.
Bobby though. You had no idea who the guy was (you heard somebody saying he was taking a personal year from studying…well duh) but he is that guy on crack everybody meet at least once in their lives! Completely insane. Laughing all the time, acting as if he’s already smoked something on his way to the party. Most of the time you and Minho actually ended up laughing at Bobby and not with him.
An hour and two bottles later Bobby was gone and neither of you could find your respective companions.
All you remember is how he kept looking at you. You already forgot that gaze that he had, that one from two years ago. The alcohol must have made it more radiant.
“It’s getting really hot, I need some air.” You say.
“I wouldn’t mind some air too.”
You get out of the house. It’s still raining. You keep near the house but the water starts drenching your coat.
“My car’s over there, just across the street.” You hear right from behind you and wonder how he was so stealth. Minho’s hand drowse out to point at something and sure enough a little over to your left on the other side of the street a car is parked.
“You drove to a party where you drink?” You turn to him swiftly, eyes furrowed.
He chuckles at the expression and you only then realise that you’re very close, you’re face to his chest close.
“I wasn’t supposed to drink. That was the original plan. Come on, we’ll open the windows and just sit there unless you want to go back in there.” Minho’s gaze lives you to look back at the still very loud house.
“No, let’s go.”
You run under the rain and you have no idea why you’re laughing.
Your hair is wet, and you can’t wait to get out of that overcoat as soon as you're in the car. But there’s this lightness in the air. And this presence. Everything feels cloudy and bumpy with energy and as if there’s only you and Minho and no one else for miles.
You know you’re drunk. Very much so. Human might pass to from this amount of alcohol, you’re very much functional. But you are drunk. Maybe it’s the reason why you feel so exposed with him. You’re not like that usually. Drink and have fun with friends - sure. But over the years she’s learned to keep it in emotionally. But here…now…
He’s not doing anything to warrant that he wants something more from you but the air around the two of you is electrified, his voice doing something to your skin.
You have no idea how long you’re lounging in the back seat for, bodies and minds relaxed, as you look at the rain through the slightly opened windows.
There’s a moment when all words cease. There’s silence apart from the rain. And only his eyes that follow the rise and fall of your chest, his fingers that grace the back of your palm ever so lightly. And suddenly you can feel him…seep through your skin. You hear his erratic heartbeat because it feels like it’s your own. You senses highten up.
And he moves closer. Stops right above your lips and waits. Until you move, until you give permission. As though he’s waiting for you to understand something…
You can’t claim that you understand, but what you feel is a dire need to be closer to him, closer than you are right now. It’s a new feeling for you. You’re 21 and never in your life you wanted another creature to be so tightly wrapped around you, so completely intwined, for those existing inches to be gone.
Instead of pushing yourself up to meet him halfway, you take a hold of his shirt and drag him down, right to your lips.
This…this kiss is nothing short of magic.
Your pheromones mix instantly and the smell is intoxicating. Of course alphas and omegas are alluring to each other by default but this feeling with Minho is magnified.
His lips against yours as you breath the same air. More like he is your air.
And it feels divine.