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It started when Intak yawned during vocal practice.
Not a dramatic yawn, not the kind that made people stretch and groan like they hadn’t slept in years. Just a soft, sleepy little exhale with a blink that made his lashes flutter. He even rubbed at his eyes.
Keeho, alpha leader of P1Harmony and general clown of the dorm, stared at the younger like he’d been struck by lightning.
“Oh no,” Jiung muttered behind him.
Taeyang leaned over Jiung’s shoulder. “Is he staring again?”
“He’s doing that thing where he forgets he has functioning limbs.”
Keeho blinked out of it when Shota poked him in the ribs. “Are you trying to initiate a bond with your eyes, or…?”
“I’m not--” Keeho hissed, but even Jongseob looked amused from the corner of the practice room. “I just-- he looked cute. That’s it.”
“Oh no,” Taeyang whispered.
“Oh yes,” Intak chirped, still unaware, dancing slightly as he replayed the choreo. “Who wants tteokbokki after practice?”
Keeho’s brain short circuited again.
<><><><>
Keeho turned to Jiung the next day, desperation in his voice. “How do you… court an omega?”
Jiung blinked. “Why are you asking me? I’m a beta.”
“You read books!”
“Yeah, romance books, not ‘How to Woo Your Bandmate While Being Filmed 24/7.”
Still, Keeho got his answer after scouring online forums and asking Taeyang, who flat out refused to be involved (“If you make it awkward, we ALL suffer.”).
So, step one was scent gifting. Alphas usually offered a scented hoodie or scarf.
Keeho decided to go for something bold. A sweater. The one he wore after vocal training, slightly sweaty but extra scented.
He folded it neatly and plopped it onto Intak’s lap at breakfast.
“I-- what?” Intak blinked.
“It’s clean,” Keeho said quickly. “Well. Not, like, clean clean. It’s got… you know. Me. On it.”
“You’re giving me your… used sweatshirt?”
Keeho opened his mouth.
Jiung dropped his spoon into his cereal with a sigh. “You’re trying to get mated to him, aren’t you?”
Keeho made a strangled noise.
Taeyang spit out his coffee.
Intak blinked again, looked at the sweatshirt, and then smiled. “Thanks. I’ll wear it when we record vocals today.”
Keeho turned pink. Success?
He sat down to eat with a victorious glow. Until Shota leaned in and whispered, “You were supposed to wash it first. That’s the next phase of scenting.”
Keeho’s spoon froze midair.
<><><><>
Later that week, they were filming outdoors. It was windy, and Intak’s hoodie kept slipping off one shoulder.
Keeho watched it happen.
And then he snapped into action.
He darted forward, pulled out a spare jacket from nowhere, and draped it over Intak’s shoulders like a drama lead in a rainy K-drama.
“There,” he said firmly. “Can’t have you getting cold.”
Intak blinked again. “Uh… thanks. But it’s literally eighty degrees outside.”
Keeho didn’t budge. “Still.” he stood there for a moment before muttering, “Wind.”
“Hyung, are you okay?” Intak asked, amused.
“I’’m protecting you,” Keeho said.
“Oh. Are you being my alpha today?”
There was that smile again, soft and just slightly teasing.
Keeho nodded too hard.
Jiung whispered behind a camera stand, “I give it a week before Keeho combusts.”
<><><><>
Keeho woke up early. Earlier than his leader schedule should ever require.
He cooked breakfast. He made heart-shaped eggs on rice with seaweed spelling T-A-K.
He placed it carefully at Intak’s seat.
“Oh my god,” Taeyang muttered as he walked in. “Why is there a shrine at the kitchen table?”
Keeho glared. “It’s a meal. For Intak. Omegas respond to nurturing energy, okay?”
“Did you really write his name on rice?”
“Yes.”
Taeyang gave him a slow clap.
When Intak shuffled into the kitchen, yawning, Keeho practically held his breath.
Intak stopped. He looked at the plate.
Then he smiled like the sun. “You made this for me?”
Keeho tried to look casual. “Y-Yeah. You know. Needed to practice… breakfast cooking.”
“Aww,” Intak said, sliding into his seat. “It’s adorable.”
Keeho looked smug for about five seconds until Shota walked in and said, “Hey, why doesn’t my name get a rice tribute?”
“Yeah, what about me?” Jiung asked, reaching for a piece of egg.
“Get your own breakfast!” Keeho yelped.
<><><><>
That night, Jongseob found Keeho pacing in the hallway with his hands in his hair.
“I can’t do this. He’s gonna think I’m broken.”
“You kind of are,” Jongseob said. “But, like, in an entertaining way.”
Keeho groaned.
“You should just tell him,” Shota added, poking his head out of their room. “He already knows.”
“WHAT?”
“Hyung, you’re not subtle. He sleeps next to your hoodie now. He hums when he smells your scent in the dorm. He literally saved the breakfast egg from this morning and took a picture of it.”
Keeho stopped pacing.
“He what.”
<><><><>
A couple nights later, they were sitting on the dorm roof, quietly watching the city lights.
Keeho shifted nervously, holding a bottle of scent balm he made himself. It was lavender and something woodsy. His own scent, refined.
“I, uh,” he started. “I know I’ve been weird lately.”
Intak smiled. “You’re always weird.”
“I mean-- weirder. And I… I’ve been trying to court you.”
“I know.”
“You do?”
“I figured it out when you glared at the fan who complimented my neck and then tripped over your own feet trying to block the sun from hitting my face.”
Keeho groaned, running a hand down his face. “I’m the worst alpha.”
“You’re actually kind of my favorite alpha,” Intak said softly.
Keeho froze.
“Is that-- are you saying--?”
Intak leaned in and gently rested his head on Keeho’s shoulder. “If you wanna keep courting me, you don’t have to try so hard.”
“I don’t?”
“Nope. You already had me at the hoodie. Even if it was sweaty.”
<><><><>
The next morning, Taeyang found the two curled up on the couch, Keeho’s head resting against Intak’s, a new scent bottle on the table.
He took a picture. Jiung clapped.
Jongseob posted it in their private group chat with the caption, “Keeho: 0 - Alpha of the Year.”
Shota commented, “He still owes me a rice tribute.”