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“Do you want to go watch them demolish the old Pledis building with me?” Wonwoo cringed as he asked. They hadn't really talked after helping Jihoon through his heat together and every day Wonwoo felt the weird space between them growing. Festering. Those few days together had definitely opened something between them, something that Wonwoo had dreamt of for longer than he’d like to admit, but for all the ways he had imagined it happening, that hadn’t exactly been it. It, of course, being finally making any sort of romantic advance towards Seokmin. He wasn’t stupid, he knew that Seokmin was more interested in Jihoon. He had been more concerned with him the whole time, and might always prefer him. That was okay. Wonwoo didn’t need all of Seokmin’s attention. Even having some of it was such a rush that it had almost felt unreal. Like he was walking through a dream.
Look, it might seem far-fetched, but the way Wonwoo saw it, when he allowed himself to picture his perfect future was like this: Waking up in a king sized bed to see Jihoon sleeping soundly tucked into Seokmin’s arms. Seokmin wakes next and kisses Jihoon’s forehead before rolling him over to be held by Wonwoo instead while he gets up to go start breakfast, stopping on his way out to kiss Wonwoo good morning. The two of them help Jihoon through his heats, and then he and Jihoon help Seokmin through his ruts. Someday, maybe, if they’re very lucky, Jihoon will carry their pups. They won’t even know which one of them is the biological father, and they keep it that way, because it doesn’t matter to them. What matters is the three of them. A non-traditional pack, sure. But they work like that. Alpha, beta, omega. Nothing appealed to Wonwoo more.
But of course, those were all inside thoughts. Unfortunately, he couldn’t will what he wanted into existence without actually making any of his desires heard, (he knew this because he’d tried) so he would eventually have to take some sort of action. Where he was getting caught up was in the whole, how do I tell one of my best friends that I’ve been in love with him for years and seeing him help our other best friend through his late presenting heat made me realize that I’d really like to be with both of them without completely scaring both of them off? - part. Which, yeah. That was the whole thing. He was stuck on all of it and now it was New Year’s Eve and his best plan had been to ask said friend to go watch the destruction of the building that had brought them together, forming a bond that got them through multiple types of traumatic pre- and post- debut events during their formative years that probably broke Geneva Convention Laws in multiple ways.
Seokmin blinked, “They’re doing that tonight?”
Wonwoo huffed a nervous laugh, “Ha, sorry, no. Um, next week, actually.”
Seokmin stared at him for a long time. They were the last ones to leave the restaurant, standing out front, neither of them having called a car yet. Waiting. Their breath steaming in front of their faces, fogging up Wonwoo’s glasses, protecting him from having to see Seokmin clearly. “Why?”
“Why-?”
“Wonwoo, we’ve barely spoken in weeks and now you want to go watch them demolish our old building together?”
Wonwoo wiped his glasses on his sweater, squinting a bit at Seokmin in the dim streetlight, “I mean… Yeah. I think it might be cathartic?”
“That’s the only reason?” Seokmin searched his face, looking like he was on the verge of actually becoming upset.
Wonwoo took a deep breath, waiting for the steam to move out of the way before he spoke again, “Seokmin-ah, I… I want to spend time with you.”
A shy smile broke over Seokmin’s face, “Was that so hard, hyung?”
Wonwoo smiled back, feeling his cheeks turn red, wishing he could blame it fully on the cold, “Kinda, yeah.”
Seokmin rolled his eyes, “You’re ridiculous.” He stepped closer, seemingly pleased with Wonwoo’s small progress in vulnerability and speaking his wants and needs out into the open, “Hey, let’s go for a walk.”
“Right now?”
“You sound like me now.” Seokmin chuckled, “C’mon, it’s 2026! I’m almost thirty years old, I’m not getting any younger, let’s walk around the city at 2am like it’s 2016 again and we can survive on half an hour of sleep.”
“We were supposed to stop using the old aging system, Min-ah. You’re turning twenty-nine, not thirty.” Wonwoo corrected him, but stepped to his side and started walking anyway.
“Fine, you’re turning thirty this year though.” Seokmin compromised. “My logic still stands.”
“Your logic was a house of cards to begin with, I’m just easily convinced.”
He felt Seokmin staring at him out of the corner of his eye, “I’ve heard you called ‘stubborn’ on more than one occasion.”
It was true. In fact, the last time had been by Joshua. The omega had stood in his kitchen, chastising him for being that exactly.
“You’re just going to watch Seokmin knot Jihoon over and over through his heat and not even tell him how you feel first?” Joshua had half-whispered accusingly.
“I’m not going to watch every time, jeez.” Wonwoo deflected.
Joshua groaned, “Jesus Christ, you’re so stubborn!”
“Hey, don’t take the Lord’s name in vain in my house.”
“I’M the one who’s Catholic!” Joshua’s eyes were practically bugging out of his head.
“Babe, to be fair, you’re like, barely Catholic. I mean you believe in condoms. And abortion. And rights for queer people.” Junhui looked like he was adding more things to his mental list, considering speaking them out loud.
Joshua blinked at him, “I hate you both.”
“I’ll tell him when I’m ready, Shua. I promise. I don’t want to do it when we’re in the middle of…” He gestured towards the bathroom, where the heady mix of Seokmin and Jihoon’s scents were mixing and wafting in from, “All of this. Which, mind you could turn into a medical emergency very easily.”
“But-”
“Sweetheart, it’s going to be okay.” Junhui soothed him, wrapping a comforting arm around his waist.
Wonwoo grimaced as he caught a whiff of Junhui’s bergamot scent permeating the air. It was faint to him, of course, but that meant it was strong in reality.
Joshua caught on, “God, I will never cease to be amazed at how sensitive you are. You can smell them, too, can’t you?”
Wonwoo nodded, “Seokmin’s has always been the easiest for me, but I can recognize all of your scents now.”
“Wild.” Junhui mused.
“You’re kind of an enigma, Jeon Wonwoo.” Joshua appraised him.
Wonwoo just shrugged, “I’ve been called worse.”
“Yeah, well, everyone has their soft spots.” Wonwoo tried to kick at a pebble on the sidewalk, but missed instead, nearly tripping over his feet in the process.
Seokmin’s hand darted out, gripping his bicep, “Careful.”
Wonwoo felt his eyelids flutter at the touch, though they were separated by several layers of fabric. Seokmin seemed attuned to the effect, though, and trailed his hand down Wonwoo’s arm until he worked it inside Wonwoo’s pocket, clasping their hands together inside its warmth.
“Mmh, that’s nice.” Wonwoo mumbled happily, a little surprised at having said it out loud.
Seokmin just smiled in answer, the tip of his nose shining a pretty pink.
The streets were abandoned in this part of town. Everyone was in Hongdae or a similar area, probably, still partying the night away. Wonwoo should be tired, but he felt wide awake.
They walked in near silence together for a minute, Seokmin quietly humming the tune to Blue a few keys down under his breath. Wonwoo joined in for the last few bars, earning him a sweet smile and a squeeze of his hand from his companion.
“You really sound so lovely, Wonu.” Seokmin praised him. “The color of your voice compliments this song so well.”
“Not as well as yours.” Wonwoo felt his cheeks turn red at the compliment.
“Aish, hyung, learn to take a compliment.” Seokmin bumped their shoulders together.
Little did Seokmin know, Wonwoo had tucked away every compliment any of them had ever given him. He kept them tucked close to his heart, neatly organized in files with their names on them for easy access when he needed them most. He drew upon them more than any of them probably knew.
But, instead of saying that, he changed the subject and asked the question that had been tugging at the back of his mind for weeks now. "Um Min-ah?" He waited for Seokmin to turn his face towards him, cocking an eyebrow slightly, which was always his tell that he was paying attention, "Have you heard from, uh, Jihoon?"
He didn't miss the spike in Seokmin's scent at the mention of the man, it always reminded Wonwoo of how an oncoming thunderstorm smelled when Seokmin betrayed any negative emotions, which to his credit was a rare occurrence. Perhaps that's why Wonwoo always picked up on it so easily.
"Not as much as I'd like." Seokmin admitted with an exhale. They watched his breath puff out in the chill air in front of them for a moment as they wandered along the abandoned streets.
"I'm worried about him." Wonwoo confessed.
Jihoon had been as normal as possible at their team dinner that night, but skirted away as the night ended, barely tossing a cursory wave in their direction before allowing himself to be shuttled away in a company car with no indication whatsoever of where he was going. Unlike Seokmin, Wonwoo hadn't heard from him at all since the night he presented and they… helped him. Wonwoo really hoped they had in fact helped him, and not like made it worse or something. He had played so much League in his spare time to distract himself from his worries that he'd nearly gotten ranked Platinum (much to Seungcheol's envy) but even when his eyes were drooping with exhaustion, thoughts of Seokmin and Jihoon still haunted the back of his mind.
Seokmin tensed slightly by his side, "Wonwoo, you- you left that day. I reassured him but… I don't know. I'm not pointing my finger at you or anything but I don't know how much he bought it when I told him you just need your space sometimes." Seokmin glanced at him out of the corner of his eye, "And I don't know how much of what I said was true, either, I mean I haven't really heard from you, either."
Wonwoo's heart sank.
In the moment, he was sure he'd done the right thing. He was trying to give the two of them their space and not feel obligated to include him. He couldn't stand the thought of them trying to include him to make him feel better or something. Being pitied in that situation… yeah. No. No thanks.
They walked for a bit longer while Wonwoo gathered his thoughts, winding up at a park bench in the section of the river that no one ever went to and had thankfully stayed secret to the influencers who flapped around some of the other sections like hungry vultures waiting for their opportunity to find the next "hidden gem" of Seoul.
The two of them sat down wordlessly and Wonwoo felt himself relax as Seokmin ever so slightly rubbed their wrists together. Sure, his scent glands were built different, being a beta, but the action was still comforting, and the slight hint of dandelion he caught never failed to soothe him.
Wonwoo had been told, whether by dance or voice teachers pre-debut or by antis online, that he was the weakest dancer, the least-needed member of the rap line, the least-impressive vocalist, that Seventeen would be just as strong without him in it. The members always reassured him that wasn't true. Seungcheol was absolutely insistent that they were thirteen or they were nothing. Of course he believed them, on most levels at least. But his worst insecurities still liked to lie to him and tell him that he isn't really needed. Hell, they went on tour as nine and still sold out stadiums. Were thirteen of them really essential? Of course they were, he knew that. He knew any of them would tell him the same thing. It's just that he couldn't stand the thought of being in yet another situation where he felt like the non-essential one. No one needed a beta.
"I didn't want to be in your way." He managed at last, his voice steadier than he felt.
"Wonwoo…" Seokmin frowned, squeezing his hand in his pocket, "We wanted you there. Both of us. I promise."
Wonwoo swallowed the lump that was forming in his throat, deciding to face this head on and get it over with. Screw dragging it out. "You might have then, but let's be honest here, do you really think it's sustainable?"
"Do I think what is sustainable? Us helping Jihoon through his heats? I mean I'm not sure how that will work with him enlisted, but I wanted you there. I couldn't have done all of that without you, and I know you will protest, but it's true."
"Okay, but Jihoon-"
"Wanted you there, too." Seokmin sighed, "It makes me a little sad you can't see that, hyung."
"But realistically, in the future…" Wonwoo trailed off, unsure how to breach the topic.
"None of us know what the future will look like, Won-ah." Seokmin leaned over, laying his head on Wonwoo's broad shoulder, "And I can't speak for Jihoon, but I know I want you in the picture. I'll do whatever I can to reassure you that you are wanted, too, but Wonwoo, I need you to do that work on your end, too, okay?"
Wonwoo took a breath to steady himself, "I- I can do that, it's just-"
"Jihoon?" Seokmin asked gently, "We'll talk to him when the time is right. He's probably giving you space because I said you needed it. I'm sorry, I should have checked in sooner."
"'s okay." Wonwoo nodded, "It's not your fault, I know I'm, uh, hard to read I guess."
"You make me feel like I'm the one who needs prescription glasses." Seokmin nudged him with his elbow playfully.
Wonwoo chuckled and his heart clenched as he realized he still had something he felt the need to say, "Min-ah, I need you to know that whatever this turns into… I know Jihoon will always be more important to you and I've already accepted it. I just… I want you. Both of you. Whatever that looks like."
They sat in silence as the first tinges of golden light started bleeding across the horizon, Wonwoo now able to better make out the expression on Seokmin's handsome face, the sharp cut of his nose, his cheekbones, his jawline, the soft plane of his forehead, the warm contemplation in his pretty eyes, all on soft display.
"Neither of you will be more important to me than the other." Seokmin nodded like he was allaying his own fears as well, "But I can't say it won't look a little different. That's just what these dynamics lend themselves to. Jihoon will physically need more care at times. My instincts to protect him in a literal sense will be stronger." He looked up at Wonwoo with the first light of morning sparkling in his eyes, "But don't for a minute think I don't have enough space in my heart for both of you. If we're going down this path, Wonwoo, you have to trust me on that. I will earn that trust, yes, but I need you to know that now. Before we take this any further. Promise me you understand?"
"I've always trusted you." Wonwoo felt himself leaning in before he could second-guess anything. "Seokmin-"
Seokmin nodded, answering the unasked question, leaning in to meet Wonwoo in the middle. It was a far cry from their first kiss. Slow and gentle and Wonwoo could already feel himself getting addicted to how surprisingly soft Seokmin's lips were as they guided his along. He reached across and cupped the alpha's honey skin cheek, tracing his thumb along the ridge of his cheekbone, wishing he could smell the full breadth of the others' scent, but getting a pretty good idea of how pleased he was regardless, with the dewy grass smell mixing in perfectly in the crisp early morning air.
They broke apart at last, lingering for another kiss after they'd both tried to stop the first time, before stopping genuinely, both breathing heavier than they would probably like to admit.
Wonwoo nearly protested as Seokmin wordlessly pulled their hands out of his pocket, followed by his phone from the other, snapping a picture of their fingers intertwined, then quickly creating a group chat with the three of them in it, and sending it off for Jihoon to see, with the caption, "Miss you."
"Do you think he'll-" Wonwoo was cut off by the immediate notification of Jihoon heart-reacting to the photo.
"It's Uji, of course he's awake." Seokmin chuckled.
An actual reply came a second later:
Lee Jihoon
At the Universe Factory. Bring coffee?
Wonwoo had been by Jihoon's studio countless times. Hell, even weirder times than at the asscrack of dawn on a national holiday. He knew what to expect - takeout boxes in various states of disarray, Coke Zero cans here and there, the faint smell of body odor depending on how long Jihoon had stayed there without taking a break. Luckily, the man had barely been home, just long enough to visit his family, meet up with the group for dinner, and spend New Years Day in the city before heading back on the second, so Wonwoo didn't think it realistically could have gotten too messy since Jihoon had been home.
What neither he nor Seokmin expected as they entered with coffees in tow, was to find a clearly distressed Jihoon sitting at his desk, eyes red, picking at a cuticle that was already freshly bleeding.
Seokmin moved first, kicking off his shoes and placing their drinks down on one of the desks in the room, "Hey," he crossed the room in three strides, coming to kneel beside Jihoon's desk chair, clasping his hands together to force him to stop picking, nodding at Wonwoo to grab the first aid kit so they could disinfect the mess he'd made of his nails. "You should have called us sooner, what's wrong?"
"I- I can't go back." Jihoon looked between the two of them, eyes pleading for understanding. "Please. I can't go back."
"Tell us." Seokmin implored, pulling Jihoon to his chest, where the other immediately broke down into tears.
"I'm sorry." Jihoon sputtered as he broke down, "I'm-"
"No, none of that." Wonwoo joined Seokmin on the floor, helping gently guide Jihoon down to the carpet, wedging him securely between the two of them. Right where he belonged, if you asked Wonwoo. "Just tell us so we can help you."
They listened intently as Jihoon told them how his platoon leader had actually gotten worse since his return. His designation changing had in reality been a horrible process altogether, and being the only omega in the group, he was assigned to a room by himself away from the other platoon members, who, thankfully, treated him like normal. He had hoped that going above and beyond his duties and upping his rank would make the platoon leader show more respect, but that's not what happened. Instead, the man had started "keeping watch" outside of Jihoon's room at night. It was bad enough on its own, but then the man started pumping his alpha pheromones in through the crack in the door. Jihoon left every morning worried that he smelled like the man. Then came the verbal harassment. Luckily, Jihoon had managed to capture them once on a night he'd earned phone privileges and risked keeping it with him rather than turning it back in when he was supposed to. It took all of Wonwoo's strength to remain composed and he could feel Seokmin vibrating with anger beside him. The things the platoon leader was saying were foul, regressive, and absolutely abhorrent. How if "he were his alpha", he would "knock him up and keep him at home", which his where "all omegas belonged". Wonwoo couldn't bear repeating any of it.
"You're not going back." Seokmin was resolved and Wonwoo was a little worried he might be making promises he can't keep, "Not like that. Not to him."
"If I turn it in, they'll know I broke the rules and kept my phone that night, I-" Jihoon was still panicked, worried sick over what lay ahead of him. "And I lied to you guys at dinner, to Seungcheol-"
"They wouldn't believe your word against his though." Wonwoo shook his head, "You did the right thing, even if you broke the rules."
"I'm sorry, you guys shouldn't have to worry about me like this, I shouldn't have said anything-"
"Jihoon-ah, no, jagi, you did the right thing." Seokmin tried to soothe him. "Coups will understand. We'll worry about that later."
"We're gonna figure this out." Wonwoo wrapped himself around Jihoon's back, looking Seokmin in the eye as he spoke, "We promise."