Chapter Text
Felix POV / Third Person POV
Felix had been the last to present in the Stray Kids pack. As an Idol pack constantly in the public eye, their presentation was of much speculation and scrutiny. When Stray Kids had debuted only half of their members had presented.
The other three however hadn’t taken long to present after their debut. It had been that very same pressure and scrutiny from the public that had accelerated the presentation of Hyunjin, Seungmin, and Jisung. Felix thought he wouldn’t be far along from the other members yet their debut came and went and then their first official comeback and nothing.
Felix remained the same unrepresented member as usual. This had worried Chan their pack alpha. After all of his pack mates had presented it was of concern to the older man that Felix somehow had gone on without any signs of presentation.
It had taken some nagging and persistence from Chan to finally get the company to relent and allow Felix a few days off to go to a specialist and have some extensive testing done. To ensure nothing was physically wrong with him or that something was stopping his presentation.
Thankfully the doctors assured them he was perfectly healthy and his lack of presentation could just be because his sub-gender was more dormant than most and therefore it took longer for his instinct to kick in and awaken. It wasn’t super common but it could happen when someone’s alpha or omega instincts weren’t particularly strong that they would take longer to present. Even with the added pressure that came with being a pack in the public eye.
So Felix and Stray kids had carried on.
Felix didn’t much care for presenting he knew the fans were eager to see what he would present as.
And it was a common topic of conversation within their fandom to guess and make speculations of what Felix might end up presenting as. Felix thought perhaps his deep voice would make him a candidate for being an alpha.
But despite his deep voice most of the fans seem to agree that Felix was an omega through and through. He couldn’t be offended because even he thought he exhibited more omegan-like qualities. He couldn’t exactly blame anyone for coming to that conclusion when he himself had as well a long time ago.
Felix had not a single dominant bone in his body. Couldn’t take control of a situation like the other alphas around him could. He might have a deep voice that would be perfect for making commands. Felix couldn’t ever imagine himself making commands of anyone. He took to following orders and submitting to his other pack members easily.
Felix had been the first one to be marked when Stray Kids officially decided to become a proper pack. Felix had felt honored that Chan had come to him first with the request the alpha stumbling over his words with so much nervous energy. Afraid that perhaps Felix would say no that he would find the whole idea silly. That Chan would want to form a pack with some members still unpresented but Felix had only felt elation and happiness that Chan would ask him first.
That out of everyone Chan had come to him first with the suggestion. That Chan wanted them to be an official pack and he wanted Felix to be a part of that pack even when Felix wouldn’t be able to add any value to the pack still being unpresented. He had accepted right away perhaps a little to eagerly much to his later embarrassment but he couldn’t hide his pure joy at the prospect of finally wearing the mark of all his bandmates.
The men he had wanted since he first saw them in the practice room. The men he could only dream of ever wanting him that those very same men were offering him to join their pack their official pack. That Felix would get to wear not only the bite of the pack but of each of the amazing people that made up Stray Kids.
It was something he always wanted but wouldn’t even allow himself to imagine afraid of the eventual disappointment when the other realized that Felix wasn’t worthy or good enough to join their pack. That is what he had told himself and though it was painful he had learned to accept it because he understood being unpresented made him undesirable made him completely useless to any functioning pack.
When Chan came to him and asked him to join he couldn’t believe it he still didn’t believe himself worthy yet he had still said yes because it was everything he could have ever wanted in life everything he was too afraid to ask for.
Those feelings of iniquity had only grown as each member presented and Felix continued being useless and of no use to their pack dynamic.
His pack had been there each time Felix had those dark thoughts of not being worthy of the greatness that was the Stray Kids pack. Once bonded and marked it becomes difficult to hide those feelings his members suddenly become experts in figuring out each of the other’s emotions.
It was useful for members who had lots of problems with anxiety and depression. But it became a little annoying because it meant Felix could no longer hide his own insecurities from the rest of them. Still, he couldn’t say he wasn’t grateful for the reassurance and love that came whenever his pack link let the rest of his members in on his spiraling and self-doubt.
Each time he would be pulled into a long cuddle session with whichever members were free at the time. And Felix ever the cuddle bug was more than happy to be indulged in his skin-ship even from the members who usually stayed away from most physical affection.
It had been a battle but Felix had learned to fight it along with his pack. As the years passed and he still went unpresented he grew to just accept it. That it would happen when it happened that there wasn’t anything wrong and that his sub-gender was just more dormant than others.
That whatever he presented as his pack would accept and love him either way. That’s what they always assured him each time any doubt made its way to his mind and then subsequently through the pack link.
Of course that didn’t stop anyone from speculating and naturally since all the other members had presented as Alpha many of there fans assumed Felix would be an omega or perhaps a beta.
A pack of only alphas especially a pack that was under so much pressure and spent so long under the public eye was a pack more prone to issues. Most packs that consisted of only alpha often had to take more breaks in between comebacks and members would have to go on hiatus due to health complications.
It made sense without that balance that came with an omega in the group or a beta. That a pack would be more likely to burn out quickly. Alpha naturally wanted to prove themselves and had issues learning to pace themselves and take breaks.
A pack of only alphas would also be severely lacking in comfort and harmony. With the absence of an omegas calming pheromones or a beta-natural ability to neutralize and deescalate situations, the alphas would be more likely to argue amongst each other and exhaust themselves with the constant posturing and power struggle that came with a lack of balance.
It wasn’t impossible but to have a successful pack of only alphas but often they would burn bright but ultimately burn themselves out quickly as a consequence.
Most companies had taken to employing omegas and beta to temporarily join alpha-only packs in an effort to lessen this effect. Still, unless they were fully accepted and joined the pack as an official member there was only so much those omega and betas could do.
With each year that Stray Kids became more and more popular the speculation about Felix’s sub-gender didn’t only increase but so did the hope that Felix would present and finally bring the balance to their favorite K-pop group.
That Felix would finally be that missing piece to put the Stray Kids pack together. It was a lot of pressure to put on one person and Felix’s pack was there each step of the way to assure him they only expected him to be happy they had no expectations for Felix to fill some would-be hole in their pack.
Felix’s only responsibility was to continue being a valued member of Stray Kids his presentation had nothing to do with what he could offer their pack. After all, they asked him to join before he had even presented they were never looking for Felix to be the equalizer in the pack.
They just wanted Felix to be part of them to have the mark of the pack and to belong officially to them no matter what he presented as.
Still, Felix couldn’t help but yearn to be an omega or beta to be exactly what his pack needed. Even if he knew there was no pressure from his packmates he still wanted to be that final piece. They could succeed without an omega or beta but for the health of his packmates and the men he loved so dearly he wanted to be that for them.
He saw it in the way Chan burnt himself out in the studio. Minho pushes himself too far in dance . Hyunjin took criticism too personally and let it get to him to the point he had to go on hiatus.
They were surviving but anyone could see the cracks in the foundation. Because packs without an equalizer were always bound to burn too bright and too fast.
Felix didn’t know when he would present he just hoped when he did it would finally be as an omega or beta. That he would be what his pack needed him to be so that he could finally give back to the men he cared for so deeply.
That he could be of some use to their pack dynamics. It would be during there Maxident comeback all of Felix’s hopes would be brutally crushed.
It had been right after Music Bank they had just finished their performance for the new title track when Felix was suddenly hit with the need to scent and run home hide away in his room with all of his packmates.
It had been backstage when the scents became too much and Felix was hit with a pounding headache. So severe he started crying quickly drawing the attention of all his mates.
Jisung having been the closest to him at the time was the first to notice the sudden appearance of a new scent coming from Felix. Then through the bond, they all sensed the distress and pain coming from their unpresented mate.
Chan and Minho instantly jump into action letting the manager know that schedules would need to be canceled for the rest of the day and the one after. They had quickly escorted Felix and the rest of the pack home where Felix was finally let in on what was happening to him.
“You are presenting Lix” Chan had told him happily
Felix hadn’t noticed a change in his body and couldn’t feel those waves of lust and need running through his body like he had been told would happen when he presented. But if Chan was saying it then it must be true because he knows his pack alpha would never lie to him, not about something this important.
So logically Felix’s next question was
“What Am I presenting as hyung I can’t tell,” Felix asked confused why he wasn’t feeling anything in particular that he was told was to be expected from an Omega or beta presentation
Chan’s face had then twisted into one of sadness for a brief moment and that should have been Felix’s indication that something was wrong. But Chan had quickly schooled his expression putting on one of happiness and content even if he knew the next words out of his mouth would be devastating to the boy who had been talking nonstop about how much he wanted to finally take his place as the pack omega.
“You are presenting as an Alpha Lixie” Chan says with a smile trying and hoping his reaction might help soften the blow of his words and revelation to his newest alpha mate.