Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Jeonghan already had his iPhone 4 out of his backpack by the time the dismissal bell finished ringing, tapping away at the screen as he stood up from his chair and slung his backpack and cheer bag over his shoulders. He double checked his messages from his mom reminding him that Chan's mom would be picking him up from school that day before switching over to his conversation with Jun to check on him since he'd apparently gone home sick considering Jeonghan distinctly remembered speaking to him in the courtyard before school only for his best friend to not be anywhere to be seen during lunch nor seventh period home economics. Jung texted back almost instantly but Jeonghan didn't quite get a chance to read it as he suddenly heard a very familiar, very infuriating voice call out from behind him. "Hey, sugar tits!" He didn't even have to turn around to know Jacob Patton was looking at him with that irritatingly smug smirk he always had. "You coming to the party tonight?' Jeonghan simply flipped the alpha off over his shoulder before pushing through the doors that led out to the courtyard.

Soonyoung caught up to Jeonghan at the entrance to the courtyard, lightly nudging him. "You heard from Jun yet?"

"Yeah, apparently he started presenting during English." Jeonghan said as he typed out a text to Jun to feel better before locking his phone and sliding it into his hoodie pocket. "He's an alpha."

"Guess the universe decided we needed some diversity in our group." Soonyoung mused.

Jeonghan snorted quietly. "Here's hoping he doesn't turn into a dumbass like all the other alphas here."

Soonyoung gave him a look. "Come on, they're not all that bad."

"I'm pretty sure they are." Jeonghan retorted.

Soonyoung bit his lip for a moment. "Chris Hall isn't that bad."

Jeonghan gave his best friend a small smile, knowing how big of a crush Soonyoung had on him. "Chris Hall is the exception." Soonyoung looked like he wanted to say more but then Jeonghan spotted Chan's mom pulling up, the 11 year old in the front seat with Jeonghan's own younger sister in the back. "Hi, Mrs. Lee." He greeted her as he and Soonyoung slid into the backseat with Subin.

"Thanks for the ride." Soonyoung said as they buckled in.

When they were dropped off at Jeonghan's house ten minutes later, Jeonghan quickly unlocked the door to let them in, Subin immediately pushing past him to lay claim on the TV. Rolling his eyes slightly while smiling, Jeonghan gestured for Soonyoung to go on to his room while he padded to the kitchen to drop off his lunch bag and grab some snacks. Once he had as much junk food as he could carry in his arms, he headed back to his room.   He had just barely closed the door when Soonyoung blurted out what he'd been holding in. "I kissed Chris!"

"Really?" Jeonghan's eyes widened as he dropped all of the snacks on the foot of his bed.

Soonyoung nodded as he grabbed a pack of Oreos. "Well, he kissed me."

"When did that happen?" Jeonghan asked, tugging his hoodie and sweatpants off until he was just in his tank top and shorts from sixth period cheer practice.

"Remember how he offered to walk me to dance practice after civics?" Soonyoung's cheeks were bright pink as Jeonghan nodded, tugging the ponytail holder out of his hair and running his fingers through it as he climbed on his bed next to Soonyoung. "Well he did, all the way to the locker room, then right before I walked inside, he leaned in and kissed me." Jeonghan couldn't help but smile as Soonyoung flopped onto his back with a dreamy smile on his face. "I think I'm in love."

"I'm really happy for you." Jeonghan said sincerely.

Soonyoung's smile remained for a moment before falling. "Too bad my mom won't let me date until we graduate. What if Chris is the one for me and I miss the chance all because of her stupid rule."

"Okay, seriously, how likely is it for you to meet 'the one' in ninth grade?" Jeonghan asked as he opened a bag of chips, earning an unamused look from Soonyoung. "Just don't tell her."

"Easy for you to say." Soonyoung scoffed. "Your parents don't care if you date or not. And all the alpha in school are obsessed with you. You have all these opportunities and take none of them."

"Because I don’t want them." Jeonghan deadpanned. "They're all stupid."

"You haven't talked to every single alpha we go to school with." Soonyoung argued.

"I've talked to enough of them." Jeonghan retorted. "Enough to know that 'the one' is not in Conway."

***

Seungcheol pouted out the window as his home disappeared into the distance. "I know this is a struggle for you, but this move is gonna be good for us." His mom said, reaching over to pat his thigh comfortingly.

"If it's so good, then why does Seungmin get to stay with Halmeoni and Halabeoji while I have to leave?" The 15 year old asked. "Why can't I stay too?"

His mom sighed quietly. "It would be cruel to make Seungmin transfer schools when he only has a few months left until graduation."

"But it's not cruel for me to have to leave all my friends? Leave the team?"

"Conway's got a great football program." His mom tried to assure him. "And you can keep in touch with your friends here while making new friends in Conway. You're gonna love it there." Seungcheol opted not to respond, crossing his arms over his chest as he glared out the window.

He didn't move or speak for the entire three hour drive to their new home, which was about half the size of their old one. He begrudgingly helped unload the car and the uhaul his father had driven until all of their boxes and furniture were inside the house. He then disappeared into the room he'd claimed as his own, working through his anger at being ripped away from everything he knew by unpacking and arranging his room exactly as he liked.

He wasn't sure how long he'd been holed up in there when his mom softly knocked on his door and poked her head in. "I need to run to Target to get a few things. Would you like to come with me?"

"Do I even have a choice?" Seungcheol grumbled.

His mom sighed. "Of course you do."

"It doesn't feel like it lately." The 15 year old alpha huffed under his breath as he followed his mom out of his room.

At Target, his mom headed straight to the home décor section, Seungcheol dragging his feet as he trudged behind her. He didn't understand how his mom could be so happily comparing corny wall decorations when his entire life was being turned upside down. High school already sucked enough, but having to move to a new one halfway through his sophomore year? What were his parents thinking?

His thoughts were suddenly interrupted by a delicate orange blossom scent wafting past his nose followed by a giggle that was pure music to his ears. All the frustration and anger he'd felt since his parents had first announced they were moving instantly left him as he turned to find the source. The world seemed to slow down as his eyes landed on quite possible the most beautiful omega he had ever seen. Shoulder length hair that was pulled half back, high cheekbones, and the softest eyes that Seungcheol wanted to drown in. The omega was laughing with two of his friends as they walked past the aisle Seungcheol and his mom were currently in.

“Cheollie, what do you want for dinner tonight?” His mom’s voice pulled him back to reality.

Seungcheol turned to her and blinked. “Uh, I don’t care, whatever you and Appa want.” He said quickly before turning to look at the omega again only to find that he and his friends had disappeared.

Chapter Text

Seungcheol didn't move just yet as his mom pulled up outside Conway High East, multiple teenagers filing through a small opening into what Seungcheol assumed was the courtyard. "You got everything? Your locker number and combo? Your schedule? The map they gave you?"

"Yes, Eomma, I have everything." He mumbled, finally unbuckling his seatbelt.

"Today's gonna be great." His mom assured him as he climbed out of the car, slinging his backpack over his shoulder and shutting the door behind him. The 15-year-old took a deep breath before heading into the courtyard himself, shivering in the cold winter air.

He instantly felt curious eyes on him as he made his way through the crowd of teenagers, hear the whispers of intrigue. He knew it came with the territory of being a transfer student halfway through the school year, so he tried to ignore it. But it was difficult, the eyes and whispers following him as he tried to find a secluded area of the courtyard to hide away in. A part of him wanted to attempt to walk home despite not knowing exactly how to and knowing that it was fairly far away.

Then he saw him. The omega from Target. He was in the far back corner of the courtyard next to one of the doors into the building, hugging himself as he did a little dance jog to keep himself warm. One of his friends he'd been with was next to him, mouth moving as if he was talking to him, but Seungcheol couldn't really hear it over the rest of the chatter filling the courtyard.

Seungcheol wasn't sure how long he stood there watching the omega for when the first bell of the day suddenly rang, causing a sudden rush of students to head towards the doors to enter the warm building. "Yah!" The Target omega called out, looking at a low section of wall near him and his friend that Seungcheol now noticed was full of various couples making out--gross. "Stop playing tonsil hockey with your not boyfriend before we're late to English!" The omega's other friend that had been at Target stood up from the wall, and the trio disappeared into the building.

With the Target omega out of his sight, Seungcheol suddenly realized he needed to also get inside and find his locker to put his stuff up before trying to locate his first class of the day. Once he found his locker, he hurriedly placed all of his notebooks and binders in it--except for what he would need for his first few classes of the day--along with his lunch bag before closing it. He scanned his map and the route he'd drawn on it when trying to plan how to limit his risk of getting lost and being late on his first day. After determining which way was the correct way from his locker, he hurried down the hall to Mrs. Traver's geometry class. He tried to ignore the way his new classmates immediately stared at him as he entered the room, ducking his head slightly as he made his way to his teacher's desk to introduce himself. Once he'd been given a textbook and had his seat assigned to him, he took his place and slumped down in his chair to try to prevent drawing any attention from himself.

Then his teacher ruined everything once the tardy bell rang by going up to the front of the class and saying, "I hope everyone had a good break. We have a new student joining us today…" Seungcheol tried not to die as everyone turned to look at him again.

Once the dismissal bell rang to free Seungcheol from that hell, he hurried out of the classroom and consulted his map again to see how he had routed the way to the science building for his health class. He made it to the classroom just as the tardy bell rang, panting slightly from how he'd had to practically run--but not really because he wasn't about to get detention on his first day--in order to get there in time. He glanced at the board and saw 'NO SEATING CHART' was written on it, so he quickly scanned the room for an open seat, finding one right next to…him.

The Target omega was sitting at the middle desk in the row on the far side of the classroom, writing in some kind of planner. Without even really thinking about it, Seungcheol hurried to claim the empty seat next to him. Apparently, his eagerness for the spot was obvious because the second he sat down, the omega tensed slightly and glanced over at him. Seungcheol felt like a deer caught in headlights but managed a somewhat awkward smile at the omega. The omega blinked at him before looking back down at his planner, subtly shifting in his seat as if trying to put distance between them.

A moment later, their teacher entered the room and clapped his hands together. "I'm Mr. Abramson and welcome to high school health education." He introduced himself. "Over the course of the semester, we will be discussing topics such as physical wellness, mental health, alcohol, drugs, sexual health-" He paused to give the class a scolding look as a few giggles rang out. "You'll also receive CPR training as part of the curriculum, and I'm sure you're all looking forward to the baby project that you cannot pass the class without passing. But first," He brandished a piece of paper. "Roll call."

As Mr. Abramson went through the class list, Seungcheol's name being one of the first called, the 15-year-old alpha anticipated the moment that Target omega would answer 'here' as he would then know his name. With each name that was called, the alpha's anxiety increased until, finally, the last name was called. "Jeonghan Yoon?"

"Here!" The omega raised his hand slightly so their teacher would spot him before resuming whatever he was doing in his planner.

Jeonghan Yoon. His name was Jeonghan. And he was even prettier up close. And he smelled very good, Seungcheol was reminded every time he got a whiff of that orange blossom scent he'd been craving for weeks since first smelling it. His brain was so hyperfocused on Jeonghan and trying to figure out how to say hi to him and start the process of getting to know him that he didn't even realize the class period had flown by until the dismissal bell rang. Seungcheol hurried to pack his things up in his backpack and opened his mouth to attempt saying something to Jeonghan, anything, but when he looked up, he saw that the omega was already exiting the classroom. Damn, he moved fast.

Seungcheol kept his eyes peeled for Jeonghan throughout the rest of the day, even spending his lunch period scanning the cafeteria to see if he could spot him, but he found him nowhere. As he entered his last class of the day--home economics--he'd resigned himself to only getting to see Jeonghan during health and began to mentally prepare himself for his next chance to talk to him the following day. After all, it was never too early to prepare.

The 15-year-old approached his new teacher's desk just as the tardy bell rang. "Ms. Nguyen?" He asked quietly. "Um, I'm Seungcheol Choi, a new student."

"I'm very happy to have you in class." She greeted him with a warm smile that had Seungcheol feeling like she was going to be his favorite teacher at this school. "Our class is kind of full, but I think I can squeeze you in at a table with Jacob, Jun, and Jeonghan--who is already starting the semester off on a note so good note." Seungcheol's heart was already starting to flutter as the older omega glanced over his shoulder at the latecomer.

"But Ms. Nguyen!" Seungcheol turned to see Jeonghan pouting slightly at the teacher with flushed cheeks. "You know how far away the gym is from here!"

"I do." Ms. Nguyen nodded understandingly. "Which is why I'm giving you a minute to cover up those shorts before I'm required to dress code you." Seungcheol hadn't even noticed the change in Jeonghan's outfit until that moment, but now that Ms. Nguyen had drawn his attention to Jeonghan's very long, very nice legs, he was struggling to keep his gaze at a respectful level. After all, his mom hadn't raised him to ogle omegas like objects.

Jeonghan made a small noise of dissatisfaction as he strolled over to his seat. "The school dress code is sexist and promotes the idea that omegas are at fault for how alphas regard us."

"I know, honey." Ms. Nguyen said sympathetically. "Unfortunately my job requires me to enforce the dress code. 30 seconds." Jeonghan's pout deepened as he dropped his duffle bag on the table and rummaged through it before pulling out a pair of sweatpants. As he pulled them on over his shorts, Ms. Nguyen turned back to Seungcheol with a glint of amusement in her eyes. "You can go sit at that table."

Seungcheol nodded and made his way over, sitting in the one empty chair left at the set of two tables that had been pushed together, quickly realizing it was next to one of Jeonghan's friends. An alpha friend, he realized a second later. Jun, his name was, Seungcheol recalled from the list of names Ms. Nguyen had given right before Jeonghan had entered the classroom. As he settled into his chair, Ms. Nguyen gave an assignment of writing a few sentences about what they'd done over the break to keep them busy as she took roll, so he quickly pulled out his notebook to begin working.

"Hey, New Guy." Seungcheol glanced up to see the alpha sitting across from him and beside Jeonghan nodding at him. "Where are you from?"

"Bentonville." Seungcheol answered simply, turning back to his notebook.

"No, I mean where are you from?"

Jun scoffed under his breath next to Seungcheol and the 15-year-old noticed Jeonghan rolling his eyes as his pen moved across his notebook. Seungcheol looked back at the guy across from him and blinked slowly before answering. "Bentonville."

The guy looked like he didn't quite believe Seungcheol but gave a small shrug. "Well since we're gonna be stuck together this semester, allow me to introduce us. I'm Jacob," he pointed his pen at Jun, "that's Ching Chong," Seungcheol glared at Jacob as he then pointed at Jeonghan, "and this here is Sugar Tits-" Jeonghan didn't even look up from his work as he reached over and slammed his fist into Jacob's crotch, causing him to instantly double over. Seungcheol's anger over the whole situation was momentarily overshadowed by amusement as he and Jun both bit back laughs. "You bitch!" Jacob choked out as Jeonghan resumed writing like nothing had happened.

"Jacob, go to the office!" Ms. Nguyen pointed to the door.

Jacob gaped at her. "Did you not see what he-"

"Office. Now." Jacob groaned and stood up, grabbing his backpack to leave the room.

"Enjoy detention, douchebag." Jun grumbled as Jacob left before turning to Seungcheol. "Welcome to Conway High East."

"Thanks." Seungcheol said flatly, looking at Jeonghan once more. He didn't fully realize he was staring until Jeonghan glanced up at him and made eye contact. Seungcheol cleared his throat and quickly looked back down at his notebook, finally starting to write about how he'd spent his winter break moving.

***

"I heard there's a new alpha on campus." Soonyoung said as he, Jeonghan, and Jun walked to the other high school campus where Jun's mom worked as the front office receptionist.

Jun hummed. "He's in home ec with us now."

Soonyoung lit up a bit. "Is he as cute as everyone's saying he is?"

"Don't you have a boyfriend?" Jeonghan asked.

"Not my boyfriend." Soonyoung replied without hesitation. "I'm not allowed to date, remember? Now tell me, is he as cute as everyone's saying he is?" Jeonghan just shrugged. "I need more than that!"

Jeonghan sighed in exasperation. "I guess he is what one would consider conventionally attractive. But he's also weird."

Soonyoung tilted his head. "Weird how?"

"He just is." Jeonghan shrugged again. "He's in my health class too and he, like, sprinted to the seat next to mine like it was some kind of trophy. And he kept staring at me in both classes."

Soonyoung blinked at Jeonghan. "Hannie, we've been over this. You are hot. Every alpha in the school is obsessed with you."

"I'm not obsessed with Jeonghan-"

"You don't count." Soonyoung waved his hand dismissively at Jun. "New Guy is just falling for your charms too."

"Well I'm tired of it." Jeonghan said, wrapping his arms around himself.

"Seungcheol doesn't give me weird vibes." Jun suddenly said. "And you know how strong my vibes always are."

"See?" Soonyoung gestured at Jun. "Jun's vibes are never wrong. It was his first day at a new school and he was instantly introduced to a walking goddess. That doesn't make him weird." Jeonghan gave another small shrug as if to say they would see.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan winced at the lingering discomfort as he woke up. He wasn’t cramping anymore and he didn’t feel like his skin was going to burn off, which was a good thing, but he was exhausted and felt like he could roll over and sleep for 40 days straight. Groaning quietly, he reached out to his bedside table and grabbed his phone from the charger, seeing a slew of texts from his best friends. He ignored them for the time being as he noticed that he had woken up around his normal time to get ready for school. He knew he didn’t necessarily have to jump right back into school, but he did have a geometry test that day that he would really rather not have to take on a different day, so he forced himself to climb out of bed. He grabbed his beloved Bun Bun from his nest and hugged him to his chest as he left his room for the first time since the beginning of the week and padded out to the kitchen.

His mom was cracking eggs into a pan with ginger, mushrooms, and kimchi when he shuffled in, the 15 year old immediately slumping in a chair at the table. “Wasn’t expecting you up any time soon.” His mom mused, stepping away from the frying eggs just long enough to get the apple juice from the fridge. “If I’d known, I wouldn’t have done eggs for breakfast.”

“I’m not hungry anyway.” Jeonghan mumbled as his mom set a glass of juice in front of him. “Thank you.”

His mom ran her fingers through his hair as he slowly slipped at the juice. “You gonna take another day to recover?”

Jeonghan shook his head slightly. “I have a geometry test.”

“I can take you just for that class then check you out again.” His mom offered.

The 15 year old shook his head again. “I need to catch up on the work I missed anyway. I’ll be fine.”

“If you’re sure.” His mom said, sounding uncertain. Jeonghan nodded and finished his juice before heading back to his room to get ready for school.

***

Seungcheol was still reeling from his test in first period when he entered his health class. All thoughts about how he’d totally just flunked it left him as he noticed the desk next to him was no longer empty. Jeonghan was back! After being out for the entire week! Seungcheol could barely contain his elation as he hurried to sit down just as the bell rang. “Welcome back.” He smiled at the omega.

“Thanks.” Jeonghan mumbled without looking up from his binder that he was organizing.

“I copied my notes for you.” Seungcheol then blurted out, rummaging through his backpack to pull out the notes on familial relationships from that week as Jeonghan looked at him in slight surprise. “So you can catch up on what you missed.”

As Jeonghan reached out to accept the notes, Seungcheol got hit with a slight wave of his orange blossom scent, only it was slightly different. It was sweeter with a hint of something that Seungcheol couldn’t place but really wanted to smell more of as a tingle spread through his stomach. He wasn’t sure what the tingle was, but he also didn’t care as his nose twitched in an attempt to catch more of Jeonghan’s scent.

“You got braces.” Those three words pulled Seungcheol back to reality, his gaze meeting the omega’s.

“Uh, yeah, I did.” Seungcheol nodded, smiling a bit to show them.

Jeonghan gave him a small smile in return. “They look nice.”

Seungcheol’s smile brightened a bit. “Thank. I guess we match now.” Jeonghan didn’t respond to that as he was already looking over the notes Seungcheol had given him.

The tingle in Seungcheol’s stomach lingered as Mr. Abramson began class, the alpha teacher instructing them to work in pairs, specifically the people they were seated next to, for this upcoming activity. Jeonghan moved first, scooting his desk closer to Seungcheol’s until they were touching. Another waft of that sweet orange blossom hit Seungcheol’s nose, making the tingle in his stomach spread up to his chest and down his arms as their teacher gave them the directions for their assignment. “On this worksheet are eight common sources of conflict between parents and teenagers. You and your partner need to brainstorm and list as many examples of each type of conflict, which you will then present to the class during our discussion…”

Mr. Abramson’s voice faded to the background as Seungcheol’s brain focused in on Jeonghan’s scent that was reaching his nose continuously now that they were so close together. The tingles he’d felt were growing stronger, almost like an itch he couldn’t quite scratch. He bit the inside of his cheek and clenched his fist as the worksheets were passed out, wondering what exactly was going on with him. It couldn’t be normal.

It was when Jeonghan ran his hand through his hair, brushing it out of his face that Seungcheol nearly snapped. With his gaze fixated on the omega’s now exposed scent gland, the unfamiliar urge to sink his teeth into it washing over him, Seungcheol realized that this must be what his dad had warned him about last year when he’d first presented. About how his teenage hormones would react to someone his inner alpha considered to be a potential mate.

Just as Jeonghan turned to Seungcheol to start discussing the assignment, the 15 year old alpha abruptly stood up. “Mr. Abramson, I think I need to go to the nurse.” He barely waited for the teacher to give him his approval before grabbing his backpack and running out of the room.

When he got to the nurse she confirmed that he seemed to be going into rut and called his mom to pick him up. She then gave him some medicine with his mother’s permission that was supposed to curb some of his symptoms and suppress the worst of it at least until he was able to get home. He spent his time waiting for her laying in the cot in the nurse’s office, trying to fight off the images of Jeonghan that kept flashing through his mind.

The medicine thankfully did help, as by the time his mom got there, all he felt was that tingling hum under his skin. In the car, he continued his internal battle of avoiding thinking about Jeonghan. Then his mother ruined it by asking with a somewhat amused tone, “So who’s the omega?”

“Eomma!” Seungcheol whined, throwing his arm over his face as he leaned his seat back.

“What? I’m curious!” She exclaimed. When Seungcheol didn’t say anything, she sighed. “You don’t have to tell me about your crush if you don’t feel comfortable. Just as long as you know that you can talk to me about things like this.”

Seungcheol remained quiet for a moment before mumbling, “His name is Jeonghan.” His mom made a noise of interest as the dam inside Seungcheol broke. “He’s a freshman but he’s only a couple of months younger than me. He’s a cheerleader. But he’s not, like, rude or stuck up or a bully like the ones in Bentonville were. He’s smart and kind and funny and you can tell he cares a lot about his friends. He likes bunnies and the color pink and his favorite subject right now is biology. But he hates his economics class because his teacher is a jerk.”

His mom chuckling had him stopping. “Sounds like you know a lot about him.” Seungcheol shrugged, feeling his cheeks grow warm. “He sounds cute.”

“He’s beautiful.” Seungcheol said quietly.

“Are you gonna ask him out?”

Seungcheol instantly shook his head. “He’s not interested in me.”

“Well how do you know that?”

“We don’t talk outside of class.” Seungcheol deadpanned. “And we only talk about our schoolwork.”

“That doesn’t mean he’s not interested.” The rest of the ride home was silent. When they got there, Seungcheol’s mom immediately sent him to his room, assuring him she would bring some snacks and water in a little bit.

***

Jeonghan dropped his backpack and cheer bag on the floor of the locker room and immediately tugged his sweater off , ignoring the gossiping of the other cheerleaders changing around him as he always did. But as he was pulling his shorts on, something they said caught his attention. “Did you hear an alpha went into rut today?”

“I heard it was that new guy, Seungcheol.”

“Really?

“Oh, I bet he looked so hot when it happened. God, whoever triggered his rut is so lucky.”

Jeonghan wasn’t sure exactly what they were talking about, as the only time he’d ever heard of ruts was in seventh grade health and then his teacher had said that ruts only occurred in mated alphas, so he was highly confused as to why his teammates were talking about a fellow classmate supposedly going into rut. Especially when that classmate was allegedly Seungcheol, as he was acting nothing like how Jeonghan had always heard ruts described when he’d gone to the nurse. Luckily Jeonghan now had a personal encyclopedia when it came to all things alpha.

“Jun!” Jeonghan jumped on the 14 year old’s back as soon as they were out of the building after home ec. “You’re an alpha, right?”

“Thanks for noticing.” Jun replied, hooking his arms under Jeonghan’s knees to piggyback him to the courtyard entrance where they would wait for the omega’s dad to pick them up. “Why?”

“What do you know about ruts?”

“Why are we talking about ruts?” Soonyoung appeared next to them.

Jeonghan shrugged slightly. “Some of my teammates were talking about how someone supposedly went into rut at school but I didn’t think that was possible outside of a mating.”

Soonyoung reached up to pinch Jeonghan’s cheek. “Oh, you little naïve thing.” Jeonghan went to bite Soonyoung’s finger but the 14 year old omega was too fast and pulled back. “If omegas can get heats before mating why can’t alphas get ruts.”

“I mean, our bodies work different, right?” Jeonghan asked, craning his head to look at Jun’s face.

“All I know about ruts is what Baba told me when I presented two months ago.” Jun said. “Apparently about a year after we present until we’re about 17 or 18 years old, our hormones still aren’t leveled out, so when our inner alpha recognizes a potential mate, they go haywire and send us into a rut.”

“Do you know what that looks like?”

Soonyoung gave Jeonghan a weird look as Jun shook his head. “Why are you so curious?”

“I just am.” Jeonghan said but when Soonyoung kept staring at him, he sighed. “They were saying it was Seungcheol but I was there when he got sick and went home and he wasn’t acting like he was in rut.”

“Well how do you know how an alpha in rut acts?” Soonyoung pointed out.

“Well it’s not like he was acting all aggressive or sexual like they say.” Jeonghan pouted. “He was normal—or his version of normal. And then when we started working in pairs, he got all quiet and tensed up like he wasn’t feeling well, then he asked to go to the nurse and left.”

Soonyoung hummed, sharing a look with Jun. “You were working in pairs?” Jeonghan nodded. “And who was his partner?”

“Me.” Jeonghan furrowed his eyebrows, not sure why that mattered.

A smirk appeared on Soonyoung’s face. “So you moved next to him to start working, and that’s when he got quiet and tense? And people are saying he left because he went into rut? After being close to you?”

“What are you-“ Jeonghan didn’t get to finish his question as his dad pulled up and honked the horn to get the teenagers’ attention. He slid off of Jun’s back so he could hurry over to his dad’s car with his friends.

Chapter Text

Seungcheol very carefully arranged the array of snacks and the bunny plushie he'd procured--all of them being Jeonghan's favorites based on the 15-year old's observations--inside a gift box, then carefully placed the box inside his backpack, making sure it wouldn't get crushed by his school supplies. The day had finally come. The day that Seungcheol had challenged himself to finally asking Jeonghan out. "Seungcheol, we're gonna be late!"

"Coming!" Seungcheol called back to his mom, checking himself in the mirror to make sure he looked presentable.

He tried to find Jeonghan in the courtyard before school, wanting to ask him to maybe go somewhere a bit more private so he could present his gift. But the omega was nowhere to be found, or he was at least very well hidden in the crowd of teenagers. When the doors opened for them to go inside and head to class, Seungcheol took a deep breath and told himself that he could ask him later. After all, he had second period, seventh period, and directly after school before he had to head to the high school for football tryouts to do so.

He spent first period focusing more on keeping his nerves down than on the lesson. If anyone asked him what they learned that day, he would not be able to answer. Then when the bell rang to dismiss the class, his heart began pounding. Could he really follow through? What if Jeonghan rejected him? He wasn't sure if he'd be able to survive seeing him and smelling that delectable orange blossom every day if Jeonghan did. Not that Jeonghan was obligated to say yes to him just because he asked, but Seungcheol would definitely hurt for a long time afterward.

As he arrived in the doorway of his health class and spotted Jeonghan in his usual seat, all his anxiety went away, and a smile appeared on his face. Maybe he would be able to survive even if Jeonghan did say no, if simply seeing him was enough to make him feel that calm and happy. But he wouldn't know for sure if he didn't try. He stepped into the classroom, ready to ask him…

Then his eyes fell on the front of the room where a PowerPoint presentation was already projected on the board, the title screen showing 'STD DAY'.

How could he have forgotten about STD Day? He couldn't ask Jeonghan out on STD Day! He didn't want the memory to be tainted with whatever images were about to be shoved in their faces!

Another day, he told himself as he slid into his seat and flashed Jeonghan a smile in greeting as he always did. He could ask Jeonghan out another day. And he was glad he'd decided to postpone asking him out because the first picture the guest speaker showed in her presentation was a gonorrhea infected penis, and he definitely didn't want the day he asked Jeonghan out to be associated with that image.

After a very long, painful presentation that included a story of an alpha getting chlamydia in his eye because he'd scratched his ass then touched his eye without washing his hands and x-ray images of an omega who'd gotten herpes in her throat and died of suffocation, the nurse asked if anyone had any questions. Surprisingly, Jeonghan's hand shot up. "So everyone in that presentation was an adult, right? If the point of this is to show us that having sex as teenagers is going to result in us getting an STD, then wouldn't it make more sense to talk about it happening to teenagers rather than adults?"

"The point is to remain abstinent until you're mated." The nurse said.

"But you can still get STDs when you're mated." Jeonghan pointed out. "Just because you save yourself doesn't mean your partner did. And people cheat all the time and bring STDs in that way. So wouldn't it make more sense to instead of just telling us not to do it until we're mated, to teach us of not having sex before we're ready, then teach us how to be safe when we are?"

"Jeonghan." Mr. Abramson said with a warning tone.

Jeonghan blinked innocently at him, making Seungcheol put a hand to his chest as his heart fluttered. "Mr. Abramson, I'm just making sure I understand the lesson completely."

"Well you can have your parents take those questions to the school board." Mr. Abramson said before calling on another student to ask a question.

***

"What time do tryouts end?" Jun asked Jeonghan at the end of home ec when Ms. Nguyen let them talk amongst themselves after finishing their work.

"6:00." Jeonghan said. "Do you want to-"

"Tryouts?"

Jeonghan glanced over at Seungcheol, who had interrupted him. "Uh, yeah, varsity cheer tryouts are this afternoon." Jeonghan said.

"So are football tryouts." Seungcheol said, surprising Jeonghan a bit as he for some reason hadn't pictured the alpha as a football player. He wasn't as rude or misogynistic as the football players he knew. "Do you want to walk to the west campus together?"

"Um…" Jeonghan glanced over at Jun who was stifling a laugh. "I guess. I mean we're both going that way, right?"

"Right." Seungcheol smiled.

However as the two of them along with Jun walked from the east campus to the west campus, Seungcheol was very quiet, not even trying to participate in Jeonghan and Jun's conversation about the upcoming spring musical. In fact, Seungcheol seemed extremely lost in thought, almost like he was internally arguing with himself. When they reached the west campus, Jeonghan gave Seungcheol a polite smile and small wave. "Good luck at tryouts."

Seungcheol's cheeks were a bit flushed from the heat and the walk as he returned the smile. "You too."

As the 15-year-old alpha hurried towards the football field to get ready for tryouts, Jun turned to Jeonghan. "He's, like, super in love with you."

"You've been hanging with Soonyoung too much." Jeonghan rolled his eyes.

"Sure." Jun laughed. "Just don’t be too surprised when he asks you out." He turned to leave Jeonghan at the arena where cheer tryouts were being held and head to the auditorium for musical rehearsals.

"He's not going to!" Jeonghan called after him before entering the arena.

Chapter Text

"Are you sure you haven't heard anything yet?" Jeonghan asked, pacing the kitchen as his mom made dinner.

"No, Jeonghan, I have not." His mom said with a small sigh. "Calm down."

Jeonghan let out a groan at those words. "Eomma!" A whine seeped into his voice. "I can't be calm! Practices for next school year start in two weeks! How am I supposed to prepare and block out my schedule for the next few months if I don’t know if I made it or not?"

"Well you pacing isn't gonna make the email come any faster." His mom said causing Jeonghan to pout as he finally stopped pacing and flopped into his chair at the table.

Once dinner was finished and on the table, his mom pulled out her phone to check her email while waiting for Subin and their dad to get to the table to eat. She smiled and turned to Jeonghan while reading off her phone. "Congratulations to our 2011-2012 CHS Varsity Cheerleaders. Flyers: Jeonghan Yoon-" Jeonghan cut her off with a cheer, jumping out his chair to hug her in his excitement.

"What's up with you?" Subin asked, nose scrunched as the preteen sat down.

"I made varsity cheer!" Jeonghan exclaimed, doing a little happy dance.

"With your inability to yell?" Subin raised an eyebrow.

Jeonghan stopped dancing and narrowed his eyes at his little sister. "I can yell…kind of." Subin burst into laughter as Jeonghan sank back into his chair. "Plus I'm the best tumbler in the district so ha." He stuck his tongue out at Subin, who returned the gesture.

"Alright, save that for after dinner." Their mom said.

***

Seungcheol arrived at Sonshine Academy for his new part time after school job and immediately saw his coworker in the concession stand leering at the windows that saw into the main gym. "What are you doing?" He asked.

Cody glanced at Seungcheol with a small smirk. "The high school cheerleaders are here today." Seungcheol scrunched his nose in disgust at the perverted nature of the college aged alpha before pushing past him to settle into the concession stand.

Although he was still new, Seungcheol's job was pretty easy to pick up, so he just ignored the 20-year-old as he sat on the stool behind the cash register. He organized the snacks behind the counter before pulling out his phone to play games while waiting for somebody to come up to the window--usually one of the younger pups coming by to get snacks prior to their gymnastics or dance classes. That day seemed to be a slow day, only one or two people trickling in during the first 45 minutes of his two-hour shift. Then a wave of orange blossom suddenly put him on edge, his entire body tensing and his heart fluttering as he looked up to see Jeonghan walking up, his cheeks slightly flushed and tiny beads of sweat along his hairline. "I didn't know you worked here." Jeonghan said with a friendly smile.

"Yeah, I just started last week." Seungcheol said. "I wasn't expecting to see you here. Do you take a class here or something?"

Jeonghan shook his head. "It's the first stunt clinic of the year. Preparations for the state championship in December start early." Right, Cody had said the cheerleaders were there that day. But Seungcheol had thought he meant the current varsity team, not those who would be joining the team the following school year. Otherwise he would have prepared more for getting to see Jeonghan rather than being the wide-eyed mess he currently was. "Can I get a purple Gatorade and a bag of potato chips?" Jeonghan asked, holding out a couple of dollar bills.

"Of course." Seungcheol fumbled to accept the cash from the omega before turning to get the drink from the fridge.

When he turned back, Cody had pulled himself from the window to instead sidle up next to Jeonghan, much too close for Seungcheol's taste, the 15-year-old alpha's jaw ticking as he walked back over to the counter. "You're a pretty little thing, aren't you?" Cody winked at Jeonghan.

Jeonghan stared at him, blinking slowly. "You're really creepy and making me uncomfortable. Please take several steps back."

"Playing hard to get, I see." Cody moved to wrap an arm around Jeonghan.

Seungcheol quickly butted in. "I believe he asked you to step back." He glared at Cody, chin lifted slightly, until the other alpha walked away, grumbling under his breath. "Here you go." He handed Jeonghan his drink and chips.

"Thanks." Jeonghan said, his tone implying that he meant for more than just the drink and chips. "I'll see you at school tomorrow." He gave Seungcheol another small smile along with a wave before heading back into the gym.

Later, Cody had gone back to sit inside the concession stand after being scolded by their supervisor, leaving Seungcheol to sweep the hallway area outside of it. As he did so, he couldn't keep his gaze from drifting to the window looking in on the gym, his eyes immediately locking on Jeonghan as the omega was lifted into the air above their heads, his arms extending into a V shape. A moment later, he dropped back down into their arms and was safely placed back onto his feet. There was a glint of enjoyment in Jeonghan's eyes as he and his teammates worked on different basic stunts under the direction of their coach, and as Seungcheol continued to watch him for a moment longer, he couldn't help but think that he was falling just a tiny bit harder for the omega.

Chapter Text

"Keep it tight!" Coach Johnson instructed as Jeonghan's bases lifted him into a Liberty extension. He wobbled a bit at first but soon grew stable in their hold on his right leg, allowing him to extend his left leg behind him in an arabesque. "Nice job! Now we're gonna dismount with a double down!" She counted them out and the bases popped Jeonghan into the air, the 15-year-old bringing his arms in as he twisted his body twice before landing in his teammates' arms. "Great work! Take five and then we'll begin working on our pyramids."

Back on his feet, Jeonghan turned to his teammates. "I'm gonna go get a drink. Anyone else want anything?"

"That cute alpha's phone number." Austin, one of Jeonghan's bases, requested, making some of the other omegas giggle and squeal over, presumably, Seungcheol.

Jeonghan raised an eyebrow at him. "Why can't you ask him yourself?"

Austin pouted. "Because that would make me look desperate!"

"…right." Jeonghan walked over to his bag to pull out the money his mom had given him when she'd dropped him off before leaving the main gym.

As expected, Seungcheol was behind the concessions counter, speaking with a soft tone to the elementary school aged pup that was purchasing snacks before what Jeonghan assumed was their dance class based on the leotard, skirt, and tights they were wearing. Jeonghan couldn't help but smile at the sight, something about the exchange sending a warmth through his chest, as he waited for the pup to be done. When the pup did leave, Seungcheol immediately smiled at Jeonghan. "Purple Gatorade and potato chips?" He asked.

Jeonghan was so surprised that he had remembered that was his previous order that it took him a second to responded. "Just the Gatorade. Coach doesn't want us snacking on junk food much anymore, especially during practices."

"They put you on a diet?" Seungcheol frowned as he took the money Jeonghan was holding out.

"It's not like she told us we can't ever have sugar or that we have to restrict ourselves or anything." Jeonghan said. "Just that we should make sure we're getting enough protein and eating healthy and prioritizing energy boosting snacks over junk food." As Seungcheol walked over to the fridge to get Jeonghan's drink, the omega asked, "Where's pervatron 3000?"

"Cody?" Seungcheol asked for clarification.

"Was that his name?" Jeonghan replied.

Seungcheol gave a small shrug, walking back over and setting the Gatorade on the counter between them. "Somebody reported him for inappropriate behavior, and he got fired."

Something inside Jeonghan told him that 'somebody' was actually Seungcheol, and a part of him couldn't believe the alpha was holding back from boasting and gloating. "Interesting…" Jeonghan grabbed his drink and started to back away from the window before remembering Austin's request. "By the way, my friend Austin wanted me to get your phone number for him."

"Why not just ask me himself?" Seungcheol asked.

"That's what I said!" Jeonghan exclaimed, letting out a small laugh.

Seungcheol's lips curled up in the tiniest hint of a smile, his eyes gleaming with something that Jeonghan couldn't quite place. "Tell him I don't give my phone number out to just anybody."

Jeonghan nodded slightly. "Will do." He gave Seungcheol a tiny wave before turning to head back into the gym.

***

As Seungcheol was heading out of Sonshine Academy at the end of his shift, he was surprised to spot Jeonghan through the glass doors still waiting outside despite his stunt clinic ending nearly half an hour prior. Before stepping outside, an idea hit him, and he hurried back to the concession stand. He unlocked the register long enough to deposit a couple of dollars inside, then grabbed two bags of potato chips before leaving for real.

Upon stepping outside, he called out, "Heads up!" Jeonghan turned just in time to catch the bags of chips Seungcheol lobbed at him. "Nice catch."

"Nice throw." Jeonghan smiled. "That a sneak preview for football season?"

"Maybe." Seungcheol shrugged a bit before nodding to the bags of chips. "You're not at practice anymore."

Jeonghan's smile grew. "You're right, I'm not." He held one of the bags back out to Seungcheol. "You should have one too."

Seungcheol accepted the offering. "What are you still doing here?" He asked.

A deep sigh escaped the omega as he opened his bag of chips. "My family is the worst at communicating. Eomma thought Appa was picking me up when he got off work, Appa swears he told Eomma that he was working late and that she would need to pick me up. I swear it'll be so much better in October when I can start driving myself." He crunched a chip in frustration.

Although he could see his own mom waiting a few spots down from where they were standing, Seungcheol found himself saying, "I'll wait with you. So that you're not stuck here alone."

"Thanks but it should only be a few minutes." Jeonghan shook his head slightly.

"I don't mind." Seungcheol insisted, opening his own bag of chips to start snacking on.

Jeonghan bit his lip and focused on his chips for a moment. "So you excited to go to the west high this school year?" He asked.

"Actually I'm confused." Seungcheol said honestly, making Jeonghan let out a small laugh. "Usually two high schools are separated by zoning within the district, not grades."

"Welcome to Conway." Jeonghan let out a low giggle that Seungcheol couldn't help but smile fondly at. "But they are building that new high school that's supposed to change things sometime next year."

Seungcheol hummed slightly before asking, "What about you? You excited for the next school year?"

Jeonghan tilted his head a bit. "I'm excited for what varsity cheerleading will be like. And to start my career classes."

"Career classes?" Seungcheol's interest was piqued.

"I'm aiming to be a career completer in medical professions." Jeonghan elaborated. "Get a cord at graduation and everything."

"Why that?" Seungcheol asked curiously.

Jeonghan smiled. "I want to be a nurse."

"I think you'll be great at that." Seungcheol said sincerely, smiling at the slight flush that appeared on Jeonghan's cheeks.

Seungcheol had imagined many times the way he would ask Jeonghan out. But never had he imagined it would happen outside of his job as he blurted out, "Are you busy tomorrow night?" Jeonghan looked up from his chips with wide eyes. "We could go see a movie or have dinner or something." He rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

Jeonghan was quiet for a moment before saying. "Oh, um…" He cleared his throat. "I'm not really interested in dating anyone right now." It felt like. A knife had been plunged into Seungcheol's chest, but he managed to not let it show on his face as he gave a small nod of understanding. "I'm sor-"

"You don't have to apologize." Seungcheol cut him off, giving him a small, sad smile. "You have every right to say no."

It seemed like Jeonghan wanted to say something more but then a car pulled up in front of them, presumably the omega's mother's from the way he looked at it. "Thanks for the chips." Jeonghan said quietly before hurrying over to the car and climbing into the front seat.

Seungcheol finally trudged to his own mother's car. "Was that Jeonghan?" She asked with an excited tone as Seungcheol climbed in before noticing the 15-year old's dispirited mood. "What happened?"

"I don't wanna talk about it." Seungcheol mumbled, staring out the window. He could feel his mom's gaze on him for a moment before she reversed out of the parking spot.

Chapter Text

The last two weeks of the school year had been hard for Seungcheol. To have to sit next to Jeonghan in two different classes and hide his pain so the omega wouldn't feel bad, Seungcheol was sure he'd never experienced a bigger challenge in his life. He didn't fault Jeonghan for rejecting him. He hadn't lied when he'd told Jeonghan that he had every right to say no. Just like he couldn't control how much he liked the omega, Jeonghan couldn't control that he only felt platonic feelings towards Seungcheol--if even that, the omega very well could have been indifferent towards him for all Seungcheol knew. But it had still hurt and Seungcheol was looking forward to having the summer to bury himself into football practices and spend some time not crossing paths with Jeonghan so that he could begin to heal and move on.

But of course, the cheerleaders had to have summer practices. And of course they had to take place at Sonshine Academy. And to top it off, Seungcheol had to arrive at work one day for a shift following his daily lifting session at the high school weight room with the rest of the team only for his gaze to immediately find Jeonghan through the window as he and the rest of the cheerleaders were warming up. He immediately pulled his gaze away, swallowing down the lump that formed in his throat, and made his way to the concessions stand. As he settled in for his shift, he resolved to ignore the fact that Jeonghan was only separated from him by a couple of walls and a window and swore to not even so much as peek in on the practice like he had during the few stunt clinics they'd had the past couple of months.

That obviously did not work as he found himself coming up with multiple excuses to step out from behind the concessions counter and glance through the window. The first time he did so, it seemed as if the cheerleaders were working on their sideline cheers. And the fact that Seungcheol knew the omega couldn't raise his voice very loud made Jeonghan seem all that more endearing for the brief moment the alpha watched him. The second time, the team had moved on to tumbling, and Seungcheol looked at the window just in time to see Jeonghan begin a series of back handsprings across the mat as if providing an example to the others. Seungcheol's lips parted slightly, watching the omega in awe until he stepped back to watch his teammates practice. The third time, they were back to the stunts Seungcheol had gotten used to seeing. As usual, Jeonghan was being lifted into the air above his teammates' heads, and that time he had one leg free. However, rather than being completely stable like Seungcheol typically saw, Jeonghan was only up for a moment before hitting the ground. It took everything in Seungcheol not to rush into the gym to be by Jeonghan's side, to check for himself that he was okay and uninjured. After all, he wasn't Jeonghan's boyfriend, nor even really his friend. And Jeonghan probably wouldn't appreciate how Seungcheol was secretly watching him when the alpha was supposed to be working. So Seungcheol waited just long enough to make sure Jeonghan was back on his feet before returning to the concessions counter.

***

Jeonghan wasn't sure what happened. One second, he was lifting his leg to go into a heel stretch, a fairly simple stunt that he had mastered in eighth grade when he'd first been moved to flyer, and the next, he was losing his balance and falling to the side. His bases and spotters tried their best to catch him, but his upper body still managed to slam into the mat below them. "Ow~" He managed to choke out despite the wind being knocked out of him as they carefully lowered his legs to the floor with the rest of him.

"You okay?" Coach Johnson asked him as he rolled over on his back while she and his teammates gathered around to check on him.

"I'm fine." Jeonghan said with a slight nod. "Just gotta catch my breath."

His coach frowned as she looked away from him. "Take a five-minute break then we'll try again."

Jeonghan pushed himself to his feet, giving his teammates a small smile as they broke away to go drink water or run to the bathroom. He opted to do some stretches, wincing at the soreness in the shoulder that had taken the brunt of the fall. By the end of the small break, all signs of his fall were gone, and he was ready to get back into it.

Just before they gathered up to try the stunt again, Samantha, the back spotter, walked up to him. "The alpha at the concessions counter told me to give this to you." To Jeonghan's surprise, she held a purple Gatorade out to him. "Said it was on him."

"Thanks." Jeonghan said quietly as he accepted the drink, eyebrows furrowed a bit in confusion.

After practice, Jeonghan was tempted to go talk to Seungcheol, pay for the drink, maybe ask him why he was being nice to him after he'd rejected him. However, he had an appointment to get his braces off, and his mom had already called him twice due to practice running 10 minutes over. So Jeonghan settled for staring almost longingly in the direction of the concessions stand for a moment before heading outside to meet his mom.

Chapter Text

"I mean, it's weird, right?" Jeonghan asked as he laid on his stomach on his bed, Soonyoung sprawled out next to him with Jun starfished on the floor. "That he's still being nice to me? Buying me snacks and drinks for after my practices? Even though I rejected him?"

Soonyoung snorted, flipping a page in the magazine he was looking through. "Ah, yes, so weird for an alpha to borderline court the omega he likes."

"I rejected him." Jeonghan reiterated. "So he should be calling me a bitch, saying he never wanted to go out with me anyway, that it was a dare or a bet or a prank, or calling me a slut who just likes to tease alphas."

"Or maybe he's actually secure in himself and can take a rejection." Jun mused.

Soonyoung sat up to give Jun a teasing look. "You'd know all about that, wouldn't you?" Jun grabbed a stray sock from the floor and threw it at Soonyoung.

Jeonghan groaned, burying his face in his pillow. "Guys, be serious!" He exclaimed, the pillow muffling his voice.

Rolling over next to him, Soonyoung rubbed his back comfortingly. "Are you thinking you should have said yes?"

"No!" Jeonghan denied quickly, lifting his head to pout at Soonyoung. "You know I'm not the type of person to go out with someone I don't like just because they ask me. It's not right."

"Then have you considered that maybe you do like him?" Jun suggested.

Jeonghan slowly turned his head and blinked at the alpha. “And why would you think that?”

“No, no, Odd One Out has a point.” Soonyoung said thoughtfully.

“Again with the nickname?” Jun asked in exasperation.

Soonyoung ignored him. “If you truly didn’t like him, then why would you be so fixated on how he’s acting?”

"Because it's not what I'm used to!" Jeonghan exclaimed, although something was poking the back of his brain.

Before he could begin to unpack that feeling, Jun's phone dinged loudly on the floor next to him. "My mom's here." The alpha said as he sat up. "She doesn't want to come to the door though because she has Yang Yang and doesn't want to get him out of the car just for that."

Jeonghan couldn't help but immediately coo at the mention of the five-year-old. "Tell him Hannie can't wait to give him a big hug the next time I come over."

"I will not." Jun said as he climbed to his feet, shooting a finger gun at Jeonghan's pout before leaving the room.

"See you at the movies next weekend!" Soonyoung called out after him. Then he rolled onto his side, propping himself up on his elbow. "I get my braces off on Monday." He flashed Jeonghan a smile as Jeonghan rolled over to face him. "Guess what the first thing I'm gonna do is."

Jeonghan let out a small sigh. "Do I even want to know?"

Soonyoung's smile grew. "I'm gonna give Brandon Smith a blowjob."

"The baseball player who just graduated?" Jeonghan gasped, and Soonyoung somehow managed to smile even wider, cheeks turning pink. "How did that even happen?"

"He liked my instagram post showing off my dance team uniform after I got it." Soonyoung said. "Then he hit me up in my DMs. One thing led to another and now my mom thinks she's taking me to Chick-fil-A on Monday for a team bonding dinner but really I'm meeting up with Brandon."

"You're gonna give Brandon Smith a blow job in Chick-fil-A?" Jeonghan asked in disbelief.

Soonyoung shot him a look. "No, that's where we're meeting. I'll probably do it in his car."

Jeonghan sighed and shook his head. "Do you even know how to give one?"

"No but I'm a fast learner." Soonyoung wiggled his eyebrows only for Jeonghan to smack him directly in the face with a pillow.

"I literally can't even with you." Jeonghan sat up and climbed out of bed. "I'm getting popcorn."

***

Due to Seungcheol only leaving the house for summer football and for his job, and since Seungmin probably hadn't left the house at all since moving back in following his high school graduation, their parents kicked them out of the house for the evening. And apparently, they'd been planning to do that for a while as they conveniently had a pair of pre purchased tickets for Captain America playing that night. While they normally never hung out of their own free will, that night they were actually excited for their newfound plans.

However, Seungcheol's smile soon faltered as he caught a whiff of orange blossom. Seconds later, they reached the door to the cinema at the exact same time as Jeonghan and his friends. Jeonghan's eyes widened a tiny bit, but Seungcheol just silently opened the door, gesturing for the omega to go first. "Thanks." Jeonghan said quietly as he stepped inside, his friends immediately nudging him as he sent them glares.

"Was that Jeonghan?" Seungmin asked where only Seungcheol could hear.

Seungcheol looked at him with furrowed eyebrows. "How do you know about Jeonghan?"

Seungmin shrugged. "Eomma likes to talk. So have you asked him out yet."

"Yeah." Seungcheol sighed.

"I take it he said no." Seungmin mused. "Ask him out again."

Seungcheol looked at his older brother incredulously. "Why would I do that? He already said no."

"Yeah, but sometimes omegas do that to play hard to get." Seungmin said. "They want to see you work harder and prove yourself.'

"Not Jeonghan." Seungcheol said without hesitation, shaking his head. "He's not the kind to do that."

They got their movie snacks and entered the already almost full theater. It took a moment to find a pair of empty seats, but when they did, they of course ended up being right next to Jeonghan and his friends. Seungcheol tried to stay behind his brother, but Seungmin had other plans as he shoved Seungcheol ahead of him through the row, forcing him to sit in the seat next to Jeonghan. Seungcheol quietly cleared his throat and gave Jeonghan a tiny smile when he looked at him before turning to the screen as the previews began to play.

Throughout the movie, Seungcheol swore he felt Jeonghan's eyes on him every few minutes. However, whenever he would look over, Jeonghan was looking down at his popcorn or leaned over whispering to his friends, a hint of a blush on his cheeks visible from the light coming from the screen.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan groaned when his alarm went off, burying his face in his pillow. "Rise and shine!" His mom's voice rang out, his bedroom light turning on right after. "First day of school! Don't wanna be late!" Jeonghan whined, clutching at his blanket to no avail as his mom ripped it off of him. "Come on, get up!"

"Do I have to?" Jeonghan pouted, rolling over to grab Bun Bun who had left his hold at some point in his sleep.

"Yes." His mom deadpanned before leaving the room.

Jeonghan pulled his blanket over himself and tried to go back to sleep. He wasn't sure how long he succeeded before his mom returned and literally dragged him out of his bed, leaving him in a heap on the floor. He pulled himself to his feet and trudged out of his room to the bathroom he shared with Subin, finding it locked. "Subin!" He called through the door, pounding on the wood with his fist. "Let me in!"

"Go use the guest bathroom!" The 12-year-old called back.

"I need my toothbrush!" Jeonghan argued. The door opened just long enough for Subin to toss his toothbrush at him before slamming closed again. "Brat." Jeonghan huffed as he clutched his toothbrush and made his way to the guest room to use the bathroom in there.

By the time the two Yoon siblings were ready, they were running late. "Breakfast on the go!" Their mom shoved some breakfast sandwiches in their hands before practically shoving them out the door. "We gotta get Subin to the middle school."

Jeonghan made a noise of rejection through his bite of breakfast. "I can't be late to cheer practice!" He exclaimed as he climbed into the front seat of his mom's car.

"Well you should have been faster then." Subin retorted.

"I was ready before you were!" Jeonghan argued.

In the end, Jeonghan won and was finishing up his breakfast sandwich just as his mom pulled up outside the fieldhouse at the west high school campus. "Have a good day! Love you!" She called out to him as he climbed out of the car with his cheer bag and backpack.

"Bye!" Jeonghan called back before closing the door. As he made his way towards the entrance to the building, his gaze drifted to the football field where football practice was well underway. His eyes scanned over the alphas on the field until he realized he was looking for Seungcheol. With that realization, he shook his head to clear it and hurried inside for cheer practice.

After practice, Jeonghan showered in the locker room as quickly as he could just to get the sweat off and dressed in the shirt and jeans he'd packed before hurrying out to the shuttle bus that would take him and the other 10th graders back to the east campus for the rest of their school day. On his way to the bus, he caught sight of the football players heading into the fieldhouse after their own practice. Normally he wouldn't even bat an eye at them, as he'd always been the odd omega out in school, not being attracted to the jocks or the overly alpha like alphas. But that day, he stopped in his tracks as his gaze drifted past Seungcheol. A very shirtless Seungcheol. A very muscular Seungcheol. Jeonghan's mouth fell open slightly, but when he felt a trickle of something leaking out of him, he quickly clenched his butt cheeks together and turned to practically run onto the bus.

He spent the five-minute ride to the east campus taking deep breaths trying to figure out what was going on. He'd never slicked before outside of a heat, so he wasn't sure what was going on. Maybe he was getting sick or something. Either way, when the bus arrived at the other high school, he hurried to the bathroom to check his jeans and make sure there were no stains or signs that he'd leaked slick before hurrying to his Pre-AP English class before the bell rang.

Jeonghan was unlucky in that he didn't have any classes with Jun or Soonyoung that year, so he had to wait until lunch time to freak out with his best friends. He scanned the cafeteria until he spotted them and all but ran over to them, collapsing into the empty chair next to Soonyoung. "You are not gonna believe what happened!"

"Seungcheol asked you out again?" Soonyoung guessed.

"No." Jeonghan shook his head quickly. "But I saw him after practice, and he was shirtless, and he has all these muscles, and I don't even like muscles, but his muscles are nice, and he just looked so well harvested!" An unintelligible squeal followed his ramble, and he buried his face in Soonyoung's shoulder.

Jun looked up from his lunch box with a frown. "What exactly does well harvested mean in this situation."

"It means well harvested." Soonyoung said as if it were obvious. "Get with the program, Junhui." Jun stuck his tongue out Soonyoung in response.

Jeonghan lifted his head with a noise of despair. "That's not even the worst part!"

"Wait, this is a bad thing?" Soonyoung asked but Jeonghan ignored him.

"I…" He looked around and lowered his voice so only his friends could hear. "I slicked."

Soonyoung blinked. "Okay." Jeonghan let out another whine and buried his face in the other omega's shoulder once more. "That's normal when you're attracted to someone. I slicked while making out with Daniel Williams at the back-to-school pool party last weekend."

Jun furrowed his eyebrows. "What happened to Brandon Smith?"

"He's in Florida for college." Soonyoung said. "Keep up."

"But I'm not attracted to Seungcheol!" Jeonghan brought the conversation back to the topic at hand, lifting his head once more. "And I've never slicked outside of a heat! There must be something wrong with me!"

"Here comes the hypochondriac." Soonyoung rolled his eyes playfully as Jeonghan pulled out his planner to flip through.

Jeonghan studied the upcoming week for a moment before making a relieved noise. "My heat's coming up soon! That means my hormones are just out of whack! Everything makes sense again!" He closed his planner with a smile and finally pulled his lunch box out to start eating.

Soonyoung blinked. "Yeah, because you liking Seungcheol makes zero sense." He shared a look with Jun before turning back to his lunch.

Chapter Text

"C-A-T-S! Go Conway Wampus Cats, go!"

As the arena filled with students just arriving from the east campus for the first pep rally of the school year, Seungcheol's eyes were locked on the cheerleaders as they and the dance team hyped the crowd up while the band played the school's fight song. More specifically, he was watching Jeonghan. The omega had his hair up in a ponytail with a white bow--just like all the other cheerleaders--and had a blue pawprint painted on his cheek, and Seungcheol couldn't help but smile at how adorable he was as he waved his pompoms and cheered as loud as he could manage.

Unfortunately, it wasn't only Seungcheol that had eyes for Jeonghan. "He's so hot, I wonder if he's single."

"I wonder what that mouth can do."

"I wonder how you would feel if someone were saying that about your sister, Elizabeth." Seungcheol shot the female alpha a glare before facing forward, ignoring his teammates as they grumbled under their breath.

Soon, the pep rally was in full swing, but Seungcheol's focus was still on where Jeonghan was now sitting with the cheerleaders and dance off to the side, whispering and giggling with Soonyoung as the student council performed a skit that for some reason involved pouring water over someone's head. Seungcheol didn't know what was going on and didn't really care until the cheerleaders got up to perform a routine, during which one of Jeonghan's bases slipped where the student council had failed to properly wipe up the water from their skit, causing Jeonghan to immediately go down. Thankfully he was caught before he fully hit the floor, but it was obvious from the way the omega was clearly using his smile to mask discomfort and minor pain that he had landed wrong on his foot anyway.

After the routine, Seungcheol could tell Jeonghan was trying not to obviously limp as he favored his left foot while returning to his seat. The cheer coach immediately called the omega over, a slight look of concern on her face. Seungcheol subtly moved closer until he could overhear her telling Jeonghan to go to the nurse and have her look at his ankle. Without even thinking, Seungcheol slipped out of his own seat and joined them. "I'll walk you there." He offered and Jeonghan jumped slightly, probably from being startled by the alpha's sudden appearance.

After recovering from the brief surprise, Jeonghan shook his head. "I can get there myself."

"It's a long walk to make on a hurt ankle." Seungcheol insisted. "Wouldn't want to make it worse." Jeonghan bit his lip, considering the offer for a moment before nodding.

They left the arena an began the trek across the parking lot to the building on campus that housed the nurse, Seungcheol supporting Jeonghan while fighting the urge to fully wrap an arm around his waist and tug him close. When they made it to the nurse, she looked at Jeonghan's ankle before giving him a clean bill of health. "Looks like you just twisted it a bit. An ice pack should fix you right up." She gave him a warm smile before leaving to fill a Ziploc baggie with ice for him.

Jeonghan glanced over at Seungcheol, who had opted to wait with him, as she was gone. "Is this when you ask me out again?" Jeonghan asked with a tone that said he'd been through a similar situation before. "As a way of repaying you?"

"No." Seungcheol shook his head. "This is when I offer to walk you back to the arena so you don't miss your shuttle bus back to the east high." Jeonghan's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, but the nurse returned with the makeshift ice pack in hand, wrapping a paper towel around the baggie before handing it to Jeonghan.

***

Spirits were high from their win over Cabot as the cheerleaders, dance team, football team, and band filed out of their individual buses into the Conway High School West parking lot. "You sure you don't wanna come to the party tonight?" Soonyoung asked Jeonghan, shaking his arm slightly.

Jeonghan shook his head while laughing a bit. "I am exhausted and just want to go curl up in my nest." Soonyoung gave a small hum of understanding. "Wait, how did you convince your parents to let you go to a party this late at night anyway?"

Soonyoung smiled not so innocently. "Megan's hosting a team sleepover tonight and my parents okayed that. I just didn't tell them we were going to a party first."

"You are something else." Jeonghan snorted, pulling Soonyoung into a hug. "Have fun!"

"I will!" Soonyoung waved at Jeonghan before skipping off to join his other teammates as they figured out the carpooling situation.

As the parking lot slowly cleared out from parents picking up students and those who drove themselves leaving to either go home or go to the party that was happening, Jeonghan quickly realized he didn't see his dad's car there. Nor his mom's. Frowning, Jeonghan dug into his cheer bag until he found his phone, quickly calling his dad. "Appa, where are you?" He asked as soon as the alpha answered.

"The car's battery is dead." His dad informed him. "We're jumping it right now then we'll be there to get you as soon as we can."

Jeonghan sighed but before he could say anything, a sudden voice next to him said, "I'll drive you." A tiny curse escaped Jeonghan as he jumped and whirled around to see, of course, Seungcheol standing next to him. "You need a ride home, right?" The alpha asked. "I'll take you."

Ignoring the way his heart was racing, because it was clearly from the mini heart attack he'd just had and not from the closeness of the alpha despite what prior interactions were trying to lead him to believe, Jeonghan tilted the phone speaker away from his mouth. "You're not going to that party?"

Seungcheol shook his head. "I have no reason to. So do you need a ride home?"

Jeonghan bit his lip and considered his options. There was always the chance that Seungcheol would try to take advantage of him if he were to be alone in his car with him like so many other alphas would…but Seungcheol had clearly shown he was an odd one, not acting like the majority of the alphas Jeonghan had the displeasure of interacting with. He brought the speaker back to his mouth. "Don't worry about it, Appa. A friend's gonna give me a ride."

Seungcheol's car was silent for the first half of the drive, but as the alpha turned left onto Country Club Road towards Jeonghan's neighborhood, the 15-year-old omega couldn't help but blurt out, "So what's your deal?"

"My deal?" Seungcheol asked, his tone a mixture of amusement and confusion.

"Yeah." Jeonghan nodded. "You have me in your car. We're alone. But you're not making any kind of move."

"I offered you a ride because you needed one." Seungcheol said. "Not to get in your pants or anything."

"But that's what confuses me!" Jeonghan exclaimed in frustration. "Why are you so nice to me after I turned down going on a date with you?"

Seungcheol was quiet for a moment. "Have you not had someone be nice to you after you told them no?"

Jeonghan gave a small shrug. "Not really, no."

"Well, fuck those guys then." Seungcheol said, which both surprised Jeonghan and had a tingle going through his stomach. "You deserve to be treated with the utmost respect. Besides, I have no reason not to be nice to you."

He was hearing the alpha's words, but Jeonghan still didn't quite get it. It didn't help that his stomach was feeling all weird, making it hard to for him to properly process things. "But I rejected you."

"So?" Seungcheol scoffed quietly. "Just because I have a crush on you doesn't mean you're obligated to go on a date with me."

That had Jeonghan's eyes widening a bit as the fluttering in his stomach moved up to his chest. "Have?" He repeated. "Not had? So, like, in the present?" Seungcheol didn't respond, but Jeonghan felt the silence was answer enough.

When the alpha pulled into Jeonghan's driveway a few minutes later where his parents were still jumping his dad's car, the omega found himself not ready to leave the car just yet. But he also had no good reason to stay, so he quietly thanked Seungcheol and climbed out. But before he closed the door, he acted on impulse and leaned back into the car slightly. "My birthday is in a week and a half." He blurted out. "And we're having my party next Saturday at the country club at 6:00. You should come. I mean, only if you want to. Don't feel like you have to." Jeonghan felt his cheeks heating up a bit as he rambled.

A smile slowly spread across Seungcheol's face and Jeonghan's heart started fluttering even more. "I'll be there."

"Cool." Jeonghan gave an awkward nod. "Bye." He closed the car door and turned to see that his parents had watched the entire exchange.

"Who's that?" His mom asked with a slightly raised eyebrow.

"A friend." Jeonghan answered vaguely before turning to head inside. "I'm gonna go shower now." He practically ran into the house to avoid any questions he was sure his parents had.

Chapter Text

Dozens of people were milling about the party space of the country club, many taking turns walking up to Jeonghan to wish him a happy birthday, and to gush about how big he'd gotten in the case of family members that he didn't even really know. He smiled politely at each one and distractedly thanked them while keeping his focus solely on the doors to the space, watching for one specific person to show up. His best friends must have noticed, because once the stream of well-wishers finally ended, Jun and Soonyoung walked over to Jeonghan, the latter of the two tossing his arm around the older omega's shoulders. "I thought everyone was here already. Who are you waiting on?"

"Nobody!" Jeonghan blurted out. As Jun and Soonyoung stared at him, he felt his face heat up and cleared his throat. "I may or may not have invited Seungcheol."

Both of their eyes widened, and they shared a look that almost seemed excited. "You like him!" Jun exclaimed.

Jeonghan blinked as he felt his cheeks heating up even more. "What?"

"You have a cruuuush." Soonyoung sang out while poking Jeonghan playfully. "You wanna daaaate him. And kiiiiss him. And-"

At that moment Jeonghan spotted the alpha in question walking through the door and look around. "Shut up!" Jeonghan hissed, shoving his friends away before walking away from them.

Seungcheol's eyes seemed to light up a bit as he spotted Jeonghan, smiling at the omega in greeting. "Happy birthday!" He exclaimed. "Sorry I'm late. I had the closing shift at Sonshine then I had to go home to change and get your gift-"

"It's okay." Jeonghan cut him off, wondering why his heart was beating so fast.

"Okay." Seungcheol said, seeming nervous himself. Then the alpha held out the gift bag in his hand. "I hope you like it. I know you like collecting little figurines and that you really like bunnies so…" He trailed off and gave a small shrug.

Even though it wasn't technically time to open presents, Jeonghan went ahead and opened the bag as soon as he took it from the alpha. Inside was a set of tiny, multicolored bunny figurines. Simple and definitely nothing like what he was sure all of his relatives had gotten him for his birthday. Yet he somehow still knew that was going to be his favorite gift of the night because it was exactly something he loved, and he already couldn't wait to add them to the collection of figurines he already had on his desk and in his bookshelves.

And that was the moment that he realized Soonyoung and Jun were right. He did like Seungcheol. And want to date him. And possibly even kiss him. He smiled brightly as he looked back up from the gift at the alpha, who seemed to be awaiting Jeonghan's reaction. "Thank you." He said sincerely, hugging the box of bunny figurines to his chest.

Relief filled Seungcheol's expression, and his shoulders relaxed. "You're welcome."

Jeonghan felt his cheeks flush and struggled to think of something else to say. Then his mom called out to get his attention. "Come on, Jeonghan, it's time to do cake!"

"That's my cue." Jeonghan said, giggling nervously as he stepped back, stumbling a bit. Seungcheol chuckled quietly as he followed Jeonghan over to where the cake was sitting.

For the rest of his birthday party, Jeonghan hyperfixated on his newfound acceptance of his feelings for Seungcheol. He really liked the alpha. And the alpha liked him back, unless something had changed in the past week and a half since their conversation while Seungcheol was driving him home. That meant he would definitely say yes if Jeonghan asked him out. Unless he rejected him out of revenge for Jeonghan rejecting him in the first place. But Seungcheol wasn't that type of alpha…right?

Despite his internal pep talk, as he approached the alpha just before he left to go home from the party, Jeonghan felt his confidence starting to drain. "So are you going to the homecoming dance?" Jeonghan asked while nervously playing with his fingers. "With anyone?" Seungcheol shook his head. "Yeah, me neither…" What Jeonghan wanted to say next was that they should go together but the words became stuck in his throat. Instead he ended up blurting out, "Nobody's asked me so I think me and Jun and Soonyoung are just all gonna go together."

"I'm sure that'll be fun." Seungcheol said.

"Yeah…" Jeonghan started to feel awkward but was saved by his mom calling for him to come say goodbye to his cousins who had traveled all that way to see him for his birthday. "Well that's my cue. Again."

"I really need to get going too." Seungcheol said, already backing towards the door. "I'll see you around." Jeonghan nodded, smiling and waving as the alpha left while mentally berating himself for chickening out.

***

Jeonghan barely waited for his mom's car to come to a stop before jumping out of it. "Bye, Eomma!" He called over his shoulder as he shut the door and ran inside Sonshine.

He was late, which he hated being. But his Anatomy & Physiology teacher had held him back at the end of seventh period to talk about a missing assignment that Jeonghan knew for certain he had turned in. Eventually the middle-aged omega had found it and apologized to Jeonghan, but the damage was already done as he just knew Coach Johnson was going to assign him extra conditioning at the end of that week's stunt clinic as his consequence for being late.

Expecting to find his teammates deep in their warmup or even already working on the stunts that were in their routine for the state competition, he was confused to see them instead circled around a familiar person, a banner held limply between them. Before he even had the chance to ask what was going on, they held the banner out straight, revealing the words written on it.

HOMECOMING?

Seungcheol was standing there with a bright smile, holding a single rose out. Jeonghan was so shocked that he didn't even realize he was just staring dumbfounded. "Yes!" He blurted out before cringing out how eager and desperate he sounded.

"Really?" Seungcheol asked almost as if he didn't believe that was actually Jeonghan's answer. Jeonghan nodded, his cheeks heating up as his teammates began cheering and clapping while Seungcheol handed the rose to him.

***

"Jeonghan! Seungcheol is here!"

"Hold on!" Jeonghan was panicking as he hurriedly finished his makeup. Thanks the football game ending just after when the dance started, he had been on a time crunch to get home and get ready before Seungcheol picked him up. He stepped back to check himself in the mirror, taking in his burgundy off shoulder dress, half up hairstyle that he'd attempted to curl a bit, and his hurried makeup job.

He hated it.

But he didn't really have a choice. It was either go out like that or stand Seungcheol up. And he'd already rejected the alpha once, he wasn't gonna do it again now when he shared his feelings. Taking a deep breath, he left his bedroom and went out to the living room where Seungcheol was waiting for him next to his parents.

Seungcheol's eyes widened at the sight of him and Jeonghan's heart started to pound at the way the alpha was looking at him. "You look beautiful." He said so sincerely that it was all Jeonghan could think about as his parents pushed them into taking the typical couple's photos before leaving.

"The dance ends at midnight, so have him home by 12:30 at the absolute latest." Jeonghan's dad said.

"I will, sir." Seungcheol promised, taking Jeonghan's hand and causing tingles to shoot up the omega's arm.

As expected, the dance was well underway when they walked inside, music booming and teenagers spread out across the space. The two of them made their way around the dance, mingling with friends and hitting the refreshments table--as they were both pretty much starving after the game--before eventually settling on the dance floor just as a slow song.

Butterflies were going crazy in Jeonghan's stomach as the two of them swayed to the music, Seungcheol's hands resting at a respectful spot on the small of his back while his own arms were looped around the alpha's neck. "You really do look very pretty tonight." Seungcheol repeated for the dozenth time.

And just like every time, Jeonghan's cheeks grew warm. "Thank you."

Silence stretched between them for a moment before Seungcheol cleared his throat. "If you don't mind me asking…what changed?"

Jeonghan bit his lip for a second before answering. "You're different."

Seungcheol gave a tiny nod. "Hopefully in a good way."

"In a very good way." Jeonghan assured him with a tiny smile.

The way Seungcheol smiled back had Jeonghan feeling the strongest urge to kiss him, yet the omega just couldn't make himself move closer, to lean in and close the distance between them. Thankfully, Seungcheol seemed to feel the same way as he gently tugged Jeonghan closer to him and leaned in until their lips met softly. The kiss only lasted a few seconds, and was basically just a brushing of their lips, but it was still enough to have Jeonghan feeling like fireworks were going off. Seungcheol pulled back slightly as if to gauge Jeonghan's reaction, and all Jeonghan could do was smile and press his lips to Seungcheol's again.

Chapter Text

“Please Eomma!” Jeonghan whined as he followed his mom around Sam’s Oriental Store since she had dragged him along on her pre Thanksgiving errands run to Little Rock.

“I said no, Jeonghan.” She said firmly.

Jeonghan pouted as he grabbed a few packs of his favorite ramen off the shelf they passed by. “But Eomma-“

She cut him off that time. “I told you that I don’t feel comfortable with you going over to an alpha’s house when his parents won’t be home.”

“Then let him come to our house!” Jeonghan begged, earning an exasperated sigh from his mom. “I never get to see Seungcheol, Eomma! We go to different schools and he works most weekends so we only get to see each other at games! And that time is limited! It’s Thanksgiving break and Sonshine is closed so Seungcheol doesn’t have to work and I really want to get to actually see him! And if he comes to our house then you won’t have to worry about us doing anything because Subin will be there.” He paused to grab a pack of banana milk off the shelf. “Not that we would be doing anything when we’ve only been dating a month. The most we’ve done is share a few little pecks before and after games.”

His mom sighed again. “I hate to say it but you make a good argument.” Jeonghan perked up, a smile spreading across his face. “No taking him into your bedroom though.”

“Again, we will not be doing anything.” Jeonghan held back an eye roll as his mom began making her way to the checkout. “Thanks, Eomma.” His mom hummed as he grabbed some chips as they walked past.

It was when they reached the checkout that she finally noticed the mountain of food now in his arms. “Jeonghan! I told you we had a budget for today!”

“Take it from my allowance.” Jeonghan said, batting his eyelashes until his mom gave in and let him put the food on the counter to be scanned.

***

“Wow, you played a lot of sports.” Seungcheol mused as he looked at the picture wall dedicated to Subin and Jeonghan in the entryway of the omega’s house.

“Yep!” Jeonghan came back out of the kitchen with a smile, holding out one of the cokes he was carrying for the alpha to take. “Started with gymnastics and ballet. My mom said she couldn’t keep up with my energy when she was pregnant with Subin and she was hoping putting me in those classes would help tire me out. Hated ballet but I loved gymnastics. Then I wanted to do soccer and t-ball, also liked those. Then I switched from gymnastics to tumbling as soon as I was old enough and started softball. Then I did upward cheerleading all through elementary and intermediate school. Would have done basketball through upward too but they wouldn’t let me do both at the same time.”

Seungcheol made a noise of interest as Jeonghan took his hand to lead him into the living room to sit on the couch. “So how’d you end up doing only cheerleading?” He asked.

Jeonghan gave a tiny shrug. “When I started middle school, Eomma and Appa said I could only do one sport so that I wouldn’t overload myself or drain their bank account more than I already was. And I’ve always known that I wanted to cheer. My mom said that’s how she knew I was an omega long before I presented, because I was obsessed with being a cheerleader since I was four.”

“Really?” Seungcheol asked with a fond glint in his eyes. “Why?”

“You really wanna see?” Jeonghan asked with a hint of an excited smile.

And that’s how Seungcheol found himself watching Jeonghan performed the opening cheer from Bring It On while the movie played on the screen. Once they started the ‘roll call’ for the characters, Jeonghan skipped back to the couch and sat next to Seungcheol once more, curling into the alpha’s side. “So that made you want to be a cheerleader?” Seungcheol asked with an amused tone.

Jeonghan nodded. “More so watching the routines in the end and all the stunts and the passion for cheer. It just spoke to me.” He tugged the sleeves of his hoodie over his hand. “What about you? Have you always wanted to play football?”

“Not really.” Seungcheol admitted. “I mean don’t get me wrong, I love the sport and I grew up in a Razorback supporting family.” Jeonghan snorted out a laugh but quickly covered it up with a fake cough as Seungcheol shot him a playful glare. “But I didn’t really think about playing until junior high. At that point I was fed up with all the stereotyping jokes about being Asian so I decided to only do extracurricular that weren’t typically associated with our race and I figured football was a good one since I already liked it.”

“I get that.” Jeonghan said softly. “I’ve lost track of how many times people have asked me if my parents are forcing me to take the medical professions career track to give me a head start on becoming a doctor and I love making them feel awkward when I tell them my parents actually support my current plan of going to community college for a nursing degree.”

“People are the worst sometimes.” Seungcheol said before playfully pinching Jeonghan’s cheek. “Except you. I kinda like you.”

Jeonghan felt his cheeks flush as he pushed Seungcheol’s hand away only for the alpha to intertwine their fingers. “I kinda like you too.” Jeonghan said quietly.

Seungcheol’s smile grew and he started to lean in. Jeonghan tilted his head to meet the alpha in a sweet kiss. It started off as a brush of their lips like all their prior ones but with the lack of being in a rush and no one around to make them hyper aware of their actions, the kiss quickly grew a bit deeper, Seungcheol’s lips slotting against Jeonghan’s like they were made just for each other.

The kiss didn’t get to last too much longer, though, as Subin suddenly stomped on the room, prompting Jeonghan to quickly pull away from Seungcheol. “I’m hungry.” The 12 year old said, looking expectantly at her older brother.

“Go make yourself a sandwich then.” Jeonghan said even though he knew he was going to end up getting up to cook something for her anyway, both because she was stubborn and because he loved her too much to not want to take care of her.

“I want ramen.” Subin said. “And Eomma won’t let me use the stove anymore.”

“Because you somehow nearly burned the house down frying frozen dumplings.” Jeonghan deadpanned as he stood up from the couch. “You want ramen too?” Jeonghan asked Seungcheol.

“Sure.” Seungcheol smiled and Jeonghan really wanted to kiss him again but not in front of his little sister. Kissing his boyfriend would have to wait until Subin went back to hiding out in her room.

Chapter Text

Seungcheol silently cursed to himself as he ran from his car to the arena, hoping that he wasn't so late getting to Hot Springs that he'd missed Conway's performance time. He hurriedly paid the $5 admission fee and was relieved when he entered the arena and saw that the Bryant cheerleaders were in the middle of their routine, meaning Conway would be next based on the schedule Jeonghan had texted him. Searching the stands, he claimed the first empty seat he saw that still had a good view of the mat, clapping politely when Bryant finished.

As those cheerleaders left and Conway replaced them, Seungcheol's eyes went straight to Jeonghan, a smile appearing on his face at how cute Jeonghan looked with his hair pulled back in a ponytail with a large white bow in it. Jeonghan glanced at the crowd as he took his place, smiling as he spotted Seungcheol and sending him a subtle wave before moving into his opening pose for the routine. After a moment, the music started and the cheerleaders began their routine, Jeonghan and a couple other flyers being lifted in the air right off the bat. Things started off smoothly but with the second stunt, Jeonghan wobbled and was eventually dropped to the ground. He wasn't the only one, every stunt had at least one flyer who became unstable with multiple being dropped, and Seungcheol could tell all of the omegas were growing increasingly flustered. When the routine ended and the Conway cheerleaders left the mat, the organizers announced there would be a brief break before the 5a-7a coed division began. Seungcheol slipped out of his seat and made his way to the concession stand, ordering a purple Gatorade and a bag of potato chips.

Sure enough, Jeonghan arrived not much later, a dejected expression on his face. "I sucked." He said as Seungcheol held the drink and chips out to him. "We all did."

"You didn't suck." Seungcheol argued. "You were perfect. Your bases need to get better at holding you up." Jeonghan's lips quirked the tiniest bit, but Seungcheol was determined to get a true smile on his face. "Would a date tonight, cheer you up?" He offered. "We could go get dinner when we get back to Conway."

Jeonghan bit his lip slightly. "I'll have to talk to my parents. But yeah, I'd like that."

Seungcheol smiled and wrapped his arms around Jeonghan's waist. "Then I'll pick you up from the high school when your bus drops you off?" Jeonghan nodded, a smile finally spreading across his face as Seungcheol leaned in and softly pressed their lips together.

"Well, well, well." A familiar voice them parting, Seungcheol turning to see his ex-girlfriend and from Bentonville standing a few feet away with one of her fellow cheerleaders. "Never expected to see you at one of these, Seungcheol."

"Brittany. Kayla." He greeted the two omegas curtly.

Jeonghan glanced between the two of them before offering Brittany a polite smile. But before he could introduce himself, Brittany had seemingly set her sights on him. "Tough luck out there, Conway. Maybe next year." Again, Jeonghan was prevented from saying anything by the loudspeaker announcing that Bentonville High School was on deck. "You should watch us. Maybe you'll pick up on some things." Brittany and Kayla moved to walk past them to rejoin the rest of their team. "Nice seeing you, Seungcheol." Just before they were completely out of earshot, Seungcheol heard Brittany mutter to Kayla, "Talk about a step down."

"You're so much prettier than him."

It was clear Jeonghan had also heard from the way he frowned after them, but he quickly hid it. "I gotta get back before Coach Johnson freaks out." He said, brushing his lips against Seungcheol's for a few seconds before hurrying off.

***

"You're not a step down." Seungcheol blurted out in the middle of Chick-fil-A.

Jeonghan glanced up from his nugget with raised eyebrows. "Okay?" His tone made it sound like more of a question.

"I just don't want you to be worried or anything because Brittany decided to do that weird power play at the competition." Seungcheol elaborated.

"Cool." Jeonghan shrugged, dipping a nugget in sauce. "I'm not worried though." He popped the nugget into his mouth.

Seungcheol furrowed his eyebrows slightly. "But you've been really quiet and look sad."

Jeonghan let out a quiet snort. "Because we got 10th place out of 11 squads today." He reminded the alpha.

"That means you're better than West Memphis." Seungcheol supplied with a smile, earning a tiny laugh from Jeonghan.

The omega took a sip of his strawberry milkshake before speaking again. "Anyway, I don't really care about what your ex said. I mean, you're dating me and not her for a reason. And regardless of whatever that reason is, we're happy together and I'm not gonna let some stupid comment of insecurity ruin that."

Seungcheol couldn't help but be in slight awe, as the six months he'd been with Brittany had been filled with him practically walking on eggshells to keep her from getting mad at him and giving him the silent treatment. "You're pretty amazing, you know that?"

"I know." Jeonghan smiled, giggling a bit when Seungcheol quickly leaned across the table to press their lips together.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan popped out of bed as soon as his alarm went off, stretching as he made his way to the bathroom to pee and grab his toothbrush before his sister commandeered the room. After dressing in clothes good for his first period cheer practice and packing a change of clothes for after in his cheer bag as well as making sure his backpack was good for the day, Jeonghan pulled his hair into a low messy ponytail and headed to the kitchen where his mom was just setting aside rice with sesame oil for him. "Usually I have to steal your blankets to get you out of the warmth of your nest on the first day back from Christmas break." His mom mused as she began to assemble the gimbap rolls for his and Subin's lunchboxes.

"Usually I don't have a boyfriend offering to pick me up and drive me to school." Jeonghan replied.

"You know, I wasn't all that sure about Seungcheol when you told me you were dating him." His mom mused. "But he's a really nice alpha."

"Trust me, I know." Jeonghan smiled into his rice.

He finished his breakfast and brushed his teeth and the guest bathroom, finishing just as Seungcheol texted him that he was there. "Bye, Eomma! See you when you get home from work!" He called out, grabbing his backpack, cheer bag, and lunch box on his way out of the house.

Seungcheol smiled brightly as he spotted him coming out of the house, barely waiting for the omega to be settled in the passenger seat before leaning over to kiss him. Jeonghan made a small noise of surprise but quickly kissed Seungcheol back, smiling against the alpha's lips. "Well good morning to you too." Jeonghan murmured, giggling when Seungcheol responded by brushing his lips against his again. "Thank you for offering to drive me to school and pick me up afterwards."

"Don't thank me for that." Seungcheol said, waiting until Jeonghan was buckled in before backing out of the driveway. "I get to spend more time with you. Plus picking you up in the morning will make sure I leave early enough to get a good parking spot." Jeonghan laughed, his smile growing as Seungcheol removed one hand from the steering wheel to intertwine their fingers.

***

Soonyoung ran up to Jeonghan and Jun during lunch and literally crashed into the chair next to Jeonghan. "How was everyone's break?" He asked, clearly more eager to share his own story than to actually hear about his friends'.

"I got to visit my grandparents." Jun said.

"Meet any cute omegas there?" Soonyoung asked.

Jun stared at him. "If I can't talk to omegas here what makes you think I can talk to omegas in China?"

"You talk to us." Jeonghan pointed out.

"And I'm going to throw y'all's words back at you." Jun retorted. "You don't count."

Soonyoung waved his hand dismissively towards the alpha and turned to Jeonghan. "What about you? How was your Christmas with Seungcheol? Did he put anything in your stocking?"

Jeonghan blinked at him. "First of all, that was a really bad innuendo. Second of all, we've been together for barely three months. We didn't even use tongue for the first time until New Year's Eve."

"Interesting…" Soonyoung hummed, resting his elbows on the table and steepling his hands. "So to me it sounds like…" He pointed to Jun. "Still a virgin…" He pointed to Jeonghan. "Still a virgin…" He pointed to himself and smiled. "Not a virgin."

Jun nearly choked on his food while Jeonghan gaped at Soonyoung. "What? When?"

"And with who?" Jun managed to ask between coughs.

Soonyoung's smile grew. "At Andrew Taylor's back to school party on Saturday. With Joseph Moore."

"Let me get this straight." Jeonghan fully turned to face Soonyoung. "You had sex on Saturday and I'm only just now hearing about it?"

"I didn't even know Joseph Moore knew who you were." Jun said in confusion.

"He does now." Soonyoung said. "And I figured this was something to tell you in person rather than over text. It's a big deal."

"Uh huh…" Jeonghan raised an eyebrow. "You're grounded, aren't you?"

Soonyoung gave him a sheepish smile. "I didn't exactly tell my parents about the party, and they weren't happy when they found out."

Jun snorted. "And I'm guessing they don't know you lost your virginity since you're still breathing."

"And they will never know." Soonyoung said seriously.

"So what was it like?" Jeonghan asked.

"I mean, it was kind of uncomfortable." Soonyoung said. "And I was really nervous. But it didn’t hurt except for when he first put it in. I can assure you, Joseph Moore is quite decently sized."

"Yeah, I really didn't need to know that." Jun scrunched his nose.

Soonyoung rolled his eyes playfully before continuing. "It also didn't last all that long but he did get me off too so that was nice. Overall, it was kind of…underwhelming." He pursed his lips thoughtfully for a moment. "But I'm sure it'll be better with my next time."

"You're already planning the next time?" Jeonghan asked in slight disbelief.

"Um yeah." Soonyoung said as if it were obvious. "Even if it wasn't what I thought it would be, it was still fun." He finally pulled his lunch out to start eating.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan made sure Seungcheol's gift was safely tucked into his cheer bag before heading out to the alpha's car, bidding his mom and sister goodbye on his way out of the house. He climbed into the alpha's car, leaning over the center console to receive his expected greeting kiss, but instead had a Tupperware container thrusted towards him. "What's this?" He asked in confusion as he took the container.

Seungcheol rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I made you pancakes." Jeonghan's eyes widened the tiniest bit as he moved to open the container. "Well, I tried to. I wanted them to look like hearts, you know, since it's valentine's day. But they didn't exactly turn out right."

Yeah, the pancakes were a little deformed, but Jeonghan didn't care, his heart swelling as he looked from the pancakes back to Seungcheol. "I think they turned out great." The omega said sincerely.

"You haven't even tried them yet." Seungcheol snorted.

Jeonghan pointedly picked up one of the pancakes and bit into it. The pancake was just a tad undercooked for his taste, but it wasn't inedible, so Jeonghan happily took a second bite. "See? I love them!" Seungcheol snorted again, but there was a tiny smile on his face as Jeonghan leaned over and kissed him.

The 16-year-old omega nibbled on the pancakes during the drive to the west high school campus. Once Seungcheol had pulled up outside the fieldhouse where Jeonghan's cheer practices took place, Jeonghan unzipped his cheer bag. "I have a gift for you too. Close your eyes." Seungcheol made a big show of closing his, making Jeonghan giggle as he pulled out the woven faux leather bracelet he'd used his allowance to purchase. He placed it around the alpha's wrist, Seungcheol opening his eyes as Jeonghan snapped the button to close it. "If you don't like it or you want a different style or whatever, I can still return it-"

"Don't." Seungcheol cut Jeonghan off with a shake of his head, gently running his finger over the bracelet. "It's perfect." Jeonghan smiled, his cheeks growing warm, especially as Seungcheol leaned over to kiss him.

Jeonghan melted into the kiss, parting his lips until he felt the alpha's tongue flicking against his own. He pressed as close to Seungcheol as he could with the center console between them, smiling as he felt his boyfriend's hand coming up to gently hold his cheek. Then the faint sound of car doors closing brought him back to reality, reminding him that they were in the middle of the parking lot by the fieldhouse and his fellow teammates were also arriving for practice. "I should go." He said quietly, cheeks flaming.

Seungcheol nodded, rubbing his thumb over Jeonghan's cheek. "I'll see you after school." He promised, pressing his lips to Jeonghan's one more time before letting him go.

As Jeonghan climbed out of the car, it seemed as though no one had noticed or was paying any attention to what had been taking place in his boyfriend's car. But that changed as he entered the fieldhouse and went to the locker room to drop off his cheer bag and backpack. There, the teammates already inside began making teasing noises, some even applauding him. His cheeks burned so much he was surprised they didn't melt off, and he covered his face shyly as he made his way to his assigned locker.

***

The second Jeonghan stepped out into the courtyard after seventh period Anatomy & Physiology, he was immediately bombarded by his best friend. "I can't believe you didn't tell me about your little make out session with Seungcheol this morning!" Jeonghan's eyes widened, and his cheeks started burning again. "I mean, I told you about Joseph Moore's penis going inside me, and you can't even talk about your game of tonsil hockey?"

"How do you even know about that?" Jeonghan asked.

"Dance practice." Soonyoung shrugged. "Apparently it's the hot topic at the other campus."

"Oh god." Jeonghan groaned, burying his face in his hands again.

"Hey, people are just bored." Soonyoung slung an arm around Jeonghan's shoulders. "Tomorrow they'll have something completely new to talk about." They made it to the pickup area, joining Jun who was waiting for them. "In other news, I have a 'date' with Megan Miller tonight."

Jun raised an eyebrow. "Isn't she one of your sister's taekwondo friends?"

Soonyoung nodded. "Which means my parents aren't even going to bat an eye about her being over at our house tonight while they're at their annual valentine's dinner. Do you have any plans?"

"My parents are paying me to watch Yang Yang." Jun said.

"Nice." Soonyoung said before turning to Jeonghan expectantly. "What about you? Are you gonna go to the next base with Seungcheol tonight?"

"Is sex all you think about now?" Jeonghan asked, rolling his eyes playfully.

Soonyoung shrugged. "Your parents are gonna be out of the house tonight too, right? That means it's the perfect opportunity!"

Jeonghan snorted. "Sure, being at home with my little sister who never hesitates to snitch the second she thinks I can get in trouble is the perfect time to take such a big step in my still very new relationship."

"Hey, you've already lasted longer than a lot of relationships that started at Homecoming." Soonyoung pointed out.

Jeonghan was saved from having to respond by Seungcheol's car appearing in the line of cars picking students up. "Mind giving Jun and Soonyoung a ride back to the other campus since it's so cold?" He asked his boyfriend as he opened the door.

"Of course." Seungcheol nodded, waving the two 15-year-olds into his car.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan was spreading cream cheese onto a bagel for breakfast before school when his mom reentered the kitchen after checking on Subin to make sure she was up and getting ready. "I forgot to tell you but I'm picking you up from school today and taking you to an appointment after."

The 16-year-old blinked in confusion. He wasn't sick and it wasn't the time for any of his usual annual or semiannual checkups like the dentist or eye doctor. "What appointment?"

"Nothing too big." His mom answered vaguely.

"Okay…" Jeonghan eyed her, but she didn't seem to be willing to share any more information than that. "I guess I'll tell Seungcheol not to worry about getting me then." His mom hummed and nodded, leaving the room as Jeonghan bit into his bagel.

He spent the day at school wondering where his mom was taking him, yet it wasn't until that afternoon when his mom turned into the hospital parking lot and drove towards the omegas' center that realization finally dawned on him. "Are you taking me to the gynecologist?" He asked incredulously. "Why?"

"Well, you're 16 now, honey." His mom said, pulling into a parking spot. "And you've been having heats for four years, so it's probably time we go and get everything checked out just to be on top of things." Jeonghan opened his mouth to ask what happened to not needing to worry about that until he was 18 but then his mom added on, "And maybe we can ask about birth control options."

"Birth control?" Jeonghan repeated in disbelief. Then it hit him. "Is this about Seungcheol?"

His mom sighed. "I remember what it was like at your age, being so enamored by an alpha, and with prom next month-"

Jeonghan interrupted his mom with a laugh of disbelief. "You think I'm going to lose my virginity at prom? What is this, some cliché coming of age movie?"

"It never hurts to be safe." His mom insisted before climbing out of the car.

The 16-year-old proceeded to sulk as he followed his mom into the ob gyn clinic inside the hospital's omegas' center, giving her the silent treatment as she filled out some forms next to him while they waited to be called back. When they were taken back to an exam room, Jeonghan attempted to tell the gynecologist that they were there for no reason, but his mom took over, answering her questions about his cycle history and her reasoning for dragging him there. "And we were also hoping to discuss birth control."

The gynecologist nodded as she made a note on Jeonghan's chart. "Are we wanting it for heat regulation, symptom management, or something else?" Although she didn't state it explicitly, Jeonghan knew she was asking about pregnancy prevention without wanting to outright insinuate underage sex taking place.

Before his mom could answer, Jeonghan jumped in. "She wants me on birth control because she thinks I'm having sex."

"Are you?" The gynecologist asked.

"No!" Jeonghan exclaimed.

"Would you like to speak in private?"

Jeonghan sighed in exasperation. "My answer's not going to change with my mom out of the room. My boyfriend and I are not having sex, nor have we even talked about having sex. I have no plans to have sex any time soon. In fact, sex would be the last thing on my mind if it weren't for my mom constantly implying that it's happening!" Not to mention Soonyoung consistently asking Jeonghan when he and Seungcheol were going to have sex, but he wasn't going to say that out loud because he wasn't about to be responsible for word getting back to his best friend's mom that he wasn't the pure, innocent, wait-for-mating omega she wanted him to be.

His mom reached out to touch his arm. "You say that now but you're just a teenager. Hormones and impulses can come into play, and I just want you to be safe if something does happen without you necessarily planning it."

"Fine." Jeonghan groaned, holding back an eye roll. "If I take birth control will you stop bugging me about what Seungcheol and I are not doing?"

"Yes." His mom nodded.

"Then I'll take the freakin' pill." He huffed.

The gynecologist looked between him and his mom for a second. "Okay, I'll write up a prescription for you. What's your preferred pharmacy?"

Chapter Text

Jeonghan groaned in discomfort, clutching his stomach as he laid curled up in his nest. “What’s up with you?” Soonyoung asked while continuing to use Jeonghan’s mirror to take less than innocent selfies in just his underwear.

“It’s this stupid birth control.” Jeonghan pouted. “It always makes me nauseous right after I take it. And half the time I just end up throwing it back up-“ His stomach suddenly lurched, prompting him to sit up and climb out of bed. “Like I’m about to do right now.” He held a hand over his mouth as he hurried out of his room and into the bathroom, making it to the toilet just in time.

When he returned to his room after brushing his teeth, Soonyoung had pulled his pajamas back on and was laying in Jeonghan’s bed, tapping away at his phone. “Ignoring all the side effects, you’re really lucky your mom let you go on birth control.” He said as Jeonghan climbed onto the bed next to him.

“I wouldn’t say ‘let’ so much as ‘pressured’.” Jeonghan retorted.

“Still.” Soonyoung said. “I’ve been begging my mom for birth control all year, not even so I can have sex without worrying about getting pregnant, but to help my preheat cramps not be so unbearable. Even my doctor suggested we do it because of how bad they are. But she refuses. Said there’s no reason for me to be taking it at my age.” Jeonghan hummed sympathetically but didn’t get the chance to say anything as Soonyoung moved into ranting about something he’d been complaining about for two weeks at that point. “And you know Zachary Smith asked me to prom and my mom told me I couldn’t go. Said that it was only for juniors and seniors. Then when I pointed out that sophomores could go if they were invited as someone’s date, you being exhibit a, she told me I was too young to be worrying about alphas and that I should be focusing on my schoolwork and my dancing and that I can think about dating when I get to college.” He rolled his eyes with a huff. “I’ll just have to live vicariously through you tomorrow night when you and Seungcheol get it on.”

Jeonghan scoffed. “What is with you and my mom and the idea that I’m losing my virginity tomorrow night? It’s not gonna happen.”

“You never know.” Soonyoung said. “Seungcheol could be planning a big romantic night for the two of you after you leave the dance.”

Thankfully Soonyoung dropped the subject after that, but unfortunately Jeonghan couldn’t get it out of his mind. As they finally turned in for the night, the 16 year old tossed and turned, questions of if Seungcheol truly was going to expect sex after prom and wondering if he himself would be ready when the time came keeping him from being able to sleep. Then as they got up in the morning and Soonyoung and Jeonghan’s mom began helping him get ready for the dance that night, his stomach began to churn with anxiety. After all, they had been together for six months, and he knew how alphas thought. Even if Seungcheol had proven many times to be different than the rest, it still wasn’t that out there to assume that he might be ready to take that next step. And while Jeonghan couldn’t necessarily imagine his first time being with someone else, he didn’t think he was necessarily ready to be in that position just yet.

The anxiety followed him as Seungcheol picked him up, as they arrived at the dance venue and entered the fray of teenagers dancing, mingling, and eating. The alpha must have picked up on it because halfway through the dance, when they were gently swaying to A Thousand Years by Christina Perri, he asked, “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, why?” Jeonghan replied quickly.

Seungcheol gave a tiny shrug. “You have something on your mind.”

Jeonghan swallowed thickly. “Just thinking about after the dance. Like…did you have anything planned or…”

The alpha furrowed eyebrows slightly, pursing his lips thoughtfully. “Well…I guess Waffle House would be open. Or the Taco Bell drive through. So if you’re hungry or just not ready to go home quite yet, we can run by either of them before I take you home.”

“Really?” Jeonghan asked in surprise.

“Yeah.” Seungcheol nodded. “Unless…did you have some other idea?”

Jeonghan shook his head. “No, I just…” He trailed off and groaned inwardly, dropping his head to his boyfriend’s shoulder. “My mom and Soonyoung got in my head.” He whined.

“In what way?” Seungcheol asked, sounding even more confused.

“Nothing important.” Jeonghan lifted his head back up, but the way Seungcheol was still looking at him with furrowed eyebrows had him sighing. “They were convinced you and I would have sex tonight. My mom even made me go on birth control to ‘be safe’.”

“Oh.” Seungcheol blinked. “Do you-“

“No.” Jeonghan blurted out, shaking his head quickly before realizing how that may come across. “I mean, I’m not saying I don’t want to with you, I just…not tonight.” Seungcheol nodded. “So you really weren’t, like, thinking about or planning it tonight?”

Seungcheol shook his head. “As much as I would like to one day,” that had Jeonghan’s cheeks flushing, “I like where we’re at right now, so there’s no need to rush. It’ll happen one day when we both want to and are ready, not because our friends or parents think it’s going to.”

A soft smile appeared on Jeonghan’s face. “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me for that.” Seungcheol said, tugging Jeonghan the tiniest bit closer. Jeonghan’s smile grew as he leaned in to press his lips to Seungcheol’s for a few seconds.

Chapter Text

Seungcheol leaned out of the concessions window, looking down the hallway to see if there was any sign of anyone about to come and purchase a snack or a drink. Once he was sure there wasn't, he ducked out of the room and hurried over to the window to watch that afternoon's varsity cheer stunt clinic as he had been doing since the clinics started back up following that year’s tryouts and evaluations. The team seemed to be better that year, enough that Seungcheol's heart didn't lurch near as much as he watched Jeonghan being flung in the air as they worked on basket tosses, so that was a nice change. A not so nice change, however, was the presence of an alpha on the team.

Now Seungcheol wasn't the type of person to think alphas couldn't be cheerleaders or that his omega wasn't allowed to be around other alphas. And he didn't necessarily have any issues with the newcomer on the team, especially since Jeonghan didn't seem uncomfortable with his presence and had only positive things to say about David so far. But David seemed to most often be grouped as one of Jeonghan's bases, and Seungcheol couldn't help the part of him that took issue with certain hand placements from the alpha whenever he was supporting Jeonghan up in the air. He didn't think the alpha was trying to intentionally cop a feel or make a move on Jeonghan, and the fact that Jeonghan didn't seem to have any issues reinforced that, but that didn't mean Seungcheol had to like it.

After watching Jeonghan specifically for a few minutes, Seungcheol returned to the concessions stand. When 5:30 came around, he put a couple of dollars in the cash register and set out a purple Gatorade and bag of potato chips. A few minutes later, Jeonghan appeared, sweaty and his ponytail messy, a smile appearing on his face at the sight of his post practice snack waiting for him. "Thank you." He said, leaning over the counter to press his lips to Seungcheol's in a quick kiss.

"25 more minutes then we can go." Seungcheol promised, kissing Jeonghan one more time before the omega went around to join him behind the counter to wait.

Once Sonshine Academy closed for the night and Seungcheol's shift was over, they headed to Jeonghan's house, stopping by Chick-fil-a to pick up some dinner for themselves on the way. "I'm home!" Jeonghan called out as he let himself and his boyfriend into the house. "And Seungcheol's here!"

Jeonghan's mom poked her head out of the kitchen as Jeonghan led Seungcheol by the hand towards his room. "He can't stay too long, it's still a school night." Jeonghan hummed in acknowledgement. "And keep your door open!"

"Yes, Eomma!" Jeonghan tugged Seungcheol into his room and closed his door until there was just enough of a crack that he could argue it was left open.

Seungcheol made himself comfortable on Jeonghan's bed as the omega dropped his cheer bag and backpack, opening the latter to pull out his anatomy and physiology textbook, notebook, and the study guide his teacher had given them. "What's up with all that?" Seungcheol raised an eyebrow.

"Homework." Jeonghan said as he climbed onto his bed next to his boyfriend, crossing his legs under him.

Pouting, Seungcheol picked up Bun Bun from his spot by Jeonghan's pillows and held him over Jeonghan's textbook to block the omega's view. "Bun Bun says homework can wait and that you should cuddle your boyfriend instead."

Jeonghan snorted, lightly pushing the stuffed bunny out of the way. "Bun Bun knows me better than that. Besides, if we fill out the study guide and bring it to class tomorrow, we get bonus points on the exam."

"Something tells me you're not gonna need bonus points." Seungcheol muttered.

Seungcheol continued to pout as Jeonghan worked on the study guide, the 16-year-old alpha gradually shifting closer to the omega until the only way to get closer was by pulling Jeonghan into his lap. He didn't do that, though, rather he rested his chin on Jeonghan's shoulder. "I'm working." Jeonghan said, turning his head to shoot his boyfriend a look.

"I'm not stopping you." Seungcheol murmured, wrapping an arm around Jeonghan's waist.

Shaking his head in amusement, Jeonghan turned back to his work, only to pause when he felt Seungcheol nuzzling into the crook of his neck. It was the first time the alpha had scented him, and it had a tingle blooming in the pit of his stomach, a smile appearing on his face. But as much as he loved the feeling of Seungcheol leaving his scent on him--as well as the fact that the alpha wanted to mark him in that way--Jeonghan had to finish his homework so he did his best to ignore it, although he couldn't help but subconsciously tilt his head slightly to give Seungcheol more room to work with. Then he felt Seungcheol press his lips to his scent gland instead, the alpha leaving soft kisses to his skin. Jeonghan's eyes fell closed as he forgot about his study guide completely, the omega relaxing a bit under his boyfriend's actions.

The sudden feeling of Seungcheol's teeth against his skin had Jeonghan's breath hitching, but when he felt Seungcheol actually biting down--not enough to hurt beyond an initial flash of pain, but enough that Jeonghan knew it could quite possibly leave a mark, Jeonghan forced himself back into the present moment. "Okay, you are definitely being too distracting." He said, pulling away from Seungcheol and pushing his textbook and notebook towards the foot of his bed before settling on his stomach.

"It's not my fault you always smell so good after practice." Seungcheol said.

"When I'm all sweaty and gross?" Jeonghan asked.

"I don't think you're gross." Seungcheol said, climbing over Jeonghan's back before laying on top of him.

Jeonghan let out a groan under the alpha's weight. "You're too heavy!" He whined although he was laughing a bit. All Seungcheol did was smile and press a kiss to Jeonghan's cheek before leaning further forward to kiss the corner of his lips. Jeonghan turned his head slightly and Seungcheol took the chance to kiss him properly, their lips moving slowly yet passionately against each other.

"I thought I said to keep the door open!" Seungcheol quickly climbed off of Jeonghan and settled against his pillows once more just before the omega's mom appeared in the doorway with a stern look.

"It was open." Jeonghan said innocently.

His mom rolled her eyes. "Seungcheol, it's getting late. You should probably be getting home soon."

"Yes, ma'am." Seungcheol climbed off of Jeonghan's bed and leaned down to kiss Jeonghan's cheek. "See you tomorrow."

Jeonghan hummed. "Text me when you get home so I know you're not lying dead on the side of Hogan."

"Why not the side of College?" Seungcheol asked, making Jeonghan giggle as he kissed the omega's cheek again before leaving.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan, Seungcheol, Jun, and Soonyoung were all squished together on the latter's front porch swing--mostly thanks to Jeonghan making himself comfortable on Seungcheol's lap--enjoying the last few pieces of cake from Soonyoung's birthday party. Just as Seungcheol shoved the last bite of his piece into his mouth, his phone began ringing. He pulled it out of his pocket, the screen showing his alarm for work going off. "And that is my cue to leave." He said with a slight sigh as he turned the alarm off and slid his phone back into his pocket. "I'll text you later." He promised Jeonghan, pressing a kiss to the omega's cheek before gently nudging him off his lap so he could stand up.

"Bye!" Jeonghan waved at Seungcheol, his cheeks heating up as the alpha blew him a kiss before hopping in his car to drive off. He smiled to himself as he took another bite of cake only to flinch as Soonyoung abruptly jabbed his neck with his finger. "Ow! What the fuck?!"

"You gonna explain this to us yet?" Soonyoung asked with a cheeky grin, poking the same spot on Jeonghan's neck, making the omega realize that the makeup he'd used to cover the hickey Seungcheol had given him the night before must have started to sweat off from the summer humidity.

"No!" Jeonghan felt his cheeks grow even hotter as he slapped his hand over the spot on his neck.

"What is there to explain?" Jun asked. "Clearly Seungcheol gave him a hickey while they were making out. It's pretty self-explanatory."

Soonyoung shot the 16-year-old alpha a look. "You're no fun." He playfully punched Jun on the shoulder before turning back to Jeonghan, who had given up trying to keep his hickey hidden for the moment. "So how far have you gone with Seungcheol?"

"You see it." Jeonghan said, gesturing to his neck.

"Well, it's progress." Soonyoung said, laughing when Jeonghan playfully kicked him. "Maybe he should be the friend your parents let you invite on your annual camping trip. Think about what it would be like to have your first time in the woods."

Jeonghan blinked at Soonyoung. "One, that sounds absolutely horrible. Two, I would never have sex with Seungcheol when my parents and sister are in tents right next to us. And three…" Jeonghan paused, tilting his head thoughtfully. "It's actually not a bad idea to invite Seungcheol."

Soonyoung clapped excitedly. "I can't wait to hear about all the debauchery that will come about."

"There will be no debauchery." Jeonghan rolled his eyes. "Besides, I need to actually ask my parents first and then invite him. It may not even happen."

***

Jeonghan poked his head into the living room after finishing his bedtime routine, spotting his mom curled up on the couch with a book as the TV played softly in the background. He adjusted his hair to make sure his hickey was covered before approaching his mom. "What do you want?" His mom asked.

"About our camping trip in a couple of weeks…" Jeonghan joined his mom on the couch and hugged his knees to his chest. "Can Seungcheol come?" His mom glanced up from her book. "Before you even say it, I would like to reiterate that me and Seungcheol are not doing anything even remotely sexual and there is no way we would ever do anything on the trip. I just think it would be fun to spend the weekend with him and you always let me invite a friend."

"Friend." His mom emphasized. "Not boyfriend."

Jeonghan poked out his bottom lip, playing up his pout. "Come on, Eomma. Please? It'll give you the chance to get to know him better. Pleeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaase."

His mom sighed. "You're not gonna leave it alone if I say no, are you?"

"Nope." Jeonghan said, smiling as his mom sighed again. "So I can invite him?"

The older omega was quiet for a moment. "He stays in a separate tent." Jeonghan perked up with excitement. "And once your dad and I go to our tent for the night, you two have to go to your tents too."

"I accept those terms." Jeonghan clapped and practically threw himself at his mom in a hug. "Thank you!"

"What's that on your neck?" His mom asked.

Jeonghan abruptly pulled back, hoping he didn't look as panicked as he felt. "Soonyoung pinched me." He jumped to his feet and hurried off to his room. "Goodnight!"

Chapter Text

The Yoons were packing up the car for their camping trip when Seungcheol pulled up outside the house. Smiling brightly, Jeonghan hurried down the driveway to meet Seungcheol as he climbed out of the car, throwing his arms around the alpha. "Hi." Jeonghan greeted him, giving him a quick kiss.

Seungcheol smiled and kissed Jeonghan a second time, squeezing him lightly. "I'm gonna go help your dad." He then said, releasing Jeonghan so he could go up the driveway to assist the omega's father in packing the last of their things in the trunk.

"You don't have to do that." Jeonghan's dad tried to wave the 16-year-old off, but Seungcheol insisted.

Once the car was packed, Jeonghan, Seungcheol, and Subin climbed into the backseat while Jeonghan and Subin's parents did a last-minute check of the house to make sure they hadn't forgotten anything. Jeonghan settled into the middle of the backseat between his boyfriend and his sister, taking Seungcheol's hand in his as soon as they were buckled in. "I'm so happy you're coming with us." The 16-year-old omega said, leaning against Seungcheol.

Seungcheol smiled softly, his thumb gently caressing Jeonghan's. "I am too."

"Please don't start making out in front of me." Subin said, fake gagging as Jeonghan turned to shoot her an unamused look. But he was unable to say anything as their parents returned.

"Everyone ready?" Jeonghan's dad asked, and the three teenagers hummed in confirmation. "Then let's head out!"

Jeonghan spent the entire hour-long ride to Lake Dardanelle cuddling up to Seungcheol, playing with the alpha's fingers, giggling shyly whenever his boyfriend pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. But he didn't dare kiss him no matter how badly he wanted to as he wasn't comfortable with PDA in front of his family in such an enclosed space. When they made it to the campsite, they quickly set up their tents, Jeonghan admiring Seungcheol's bulging arm muscles as the alpha worked. Then Subin begged to go down to the lake, to which their mother agreed as long as Jeonghan went with her, meaning Seungcheol was going with them too.

After changing into their swimsuits, the three teenagers headed down the path to the lake where Subin immediately ran off into the water. Jeonghan shook his head fondly at his sister and turned to Seungcheol, freezing as he realized the alpha was in the middle of taking off his shirt. "Everything okay?" Seungcheol asked, making Jeonghan realize he was staring with his mouth open.

Jeonghan snapped his mouth shut and nodded. "Yes. Great. I'm good." He said, making Seungcheol raise an eyebrow. "You just…look very dependable right now."

"Dependable?" Seungcheol repeated with an amused tone.

"Very much so." Jeonghan nodded again, his cheeks burning. Seungcheol chuckled and leaned in to press a soft kiss to Jeonghan's lips before grabbing the sunscreen. "I can do your back." Jeonghan blurted out, not even trying to hide how eager he was to feel the alpha's muscles under his touch.

After an afternoon of swimming at the lake, the teenagers returned to the campsite to roast hot dogs for dinner followed by marshmallows to make s'mores. Jeonghan was the first to excuse himself to the campground restrooms to shower, wanting to get out of his damp swimsuit and wash the lake water from himself, plus he always took the longest to shower so getting a head start meant he wouldn't be having to find his way back through the woods on his own when it was too late. As expected, when Jeonghan got out of the shower and dressed in fresh underwear and his pajamas, his sister was just finishing up her shower too while their mom was getting ready to start hers. Jeonghan waited for Subin to be dressed so they could walk back together.

Seungcheol was sitting by the fire, freshly showered and roasting yet another marshmallow, when they returned. Subin went straight to her and Jeonghan's shared tent while Jeonghan squished himself into the chair with Seungcheol, letting one of his legs rest over the alpha's but not wanting to fully sit on his boyfriend's lap when he knew his parents would be back from the showers soon. "Are you having fun?" Jeonghan asked.

Seungcheol hummed as he blew on the freshly roasted marshmallow before offering it to Jeonghan. Jeonghan opened his mouth for Seungcheol to feed him the marshmallow, welcoming the whole treat inside. He made a tiny noise at how hot it was from being fresh out of the fire, but refused to spit it out, embracing the pain as he cupped his hands under his chin to catch any marshmallow goo that spilled out of his mouth. "My little hot mess." Seungcheol chuckle, swiping his thumb over Jeonghan's bottom lip to catch the marshmallow that had started seeping out.

"I am a mess." Jeonghan said through his mouthful of marshmallow. "And I love it."

"I do too." Seungcheol said sincerely, causing Jeonghan to freeze. "It's one of the things I love most about you."

Everything else that came out of Seungcheol's mouth after that point faded to the background as Jeonghan stared at Seungcheol, wondering if he'd misheard or if his boyfriend had actually said that. When Seungcheol noticed Jeonghan staring, he slowly stopped talking. His eyebrows furrowed as if he was about to ask Jeonghan if he was okay, but then the omega asked, "You love me?"

Seungcheol's eyes widened a bit as if just realizing himself what he'd said, then he smiled softly. "Yeah, I do."

Heart racing, a bright smile spread across Jeonghan's face as he leaned forward to press his lips to Seungcheol's. Seungcheol happily kissed him back, one hand coming up to cup Jeonghan's cheek. Then Jeonghan abruptly pulled back. "Oh, I forgot to say it back!" He exclaimed in realization.

"You don't have to." Seungcheol shook his head.

"But I do." Jeonghan insisted, his cheeks flushing as he continued to smile at his boyfriend. "I love you too."

That time Seungcheol was the one to lean in, but just before their lips touched, Jeonghan's mom's voice rang out. "It's getting late." She said. "Time for bed."

"Goodnight, Eomma." Jeonghan said as he stood up from the chair.

Seungcheol quickly cleaned off the skewer he'd used for the marshmallows before grabbing Jeonghan's hand to walk him over to his tent just like he would walk the omega to his door after their dates. "I love you." He said quietly, his reddened cheeks visible in the fading firelight as Jeonghan's dad put the campfire out.

"I love you too." Jeonghan whispered, giggling as Seungcheol brought his hand up to press a kiss to it. Then Seungcheol pressed a kiss to Jeonghan's cheek before stepping back to head to his own tent.

Chapter Text

The bus was in high spirits as they headed back to Conway following their 21-3 win over Bryant during their first game of the season. Jeonghan and Soonyoung were giggling together, making plans for their sleepover that night, when everyone's phones began buzzing with an incoming mass group text inviting everyone to a Jackson Wang party to celebrate their victory. "I thought Jackson graduated in May." Jeonghan said in confusion.

"I think he passed the torch on to someone else to carry on his party legacy." Soonyoung said. "We should definitely go. My mom already knows I'm staying with you tonight so all we need is your parents’ permission."

"And I need to ask Cheollie." Jeonghan said. "He's our ride." Jeonghan switched over to his messages with his boyfriend and asked him if he wanted to go to the party. When Seungcheol said yes, he then texted his parents, who said as long as he was home by midnight.

When the buses reached the high school Jeonghan and Soonyoung met up with Seungcheol as the alpha climbed off the football team's bus, Seungcheol of course greeting Jeonghan with a soft kiss. Then they climbed in Seungcheol's car and headed to the house the party was being held at. Upon arriving at the party, Soonyoung immediately went off in search of drinks while Jeonghan and Seungcheol went to find a slightly quieter spot to mingle.

They ended up out on the back deck with a group of people sharing a tray of brownies. "Let me guess, weed brownies?" Jeonghan laughed as Seungcheol tugged him into his lap, pressing a kiss to the side of his neck.

"Of course!" Sam, the apparent new Jackson Wang, exclaimed, obviously already high herself from how bloodshot her eyes were. The female alpha held the tray out to Jeonghan and Seungcheol. "Try some."

Seungcheol shook his head. "I'm driving so I'm staying sober tonight." He said before nuzzling into the crook of Jeonghan's neck again.

Jeonghan bit his lip as he debated it. He'd always been curious what trying weed was like, but he'd always been too worried to smoke it at the few parties he'd been to due to not wanting the smell to linger on him and sell him out to his parents, or worse to his cheer coach as he knew getting caught doing drugs would definitely result in a suspension at minimum. In fact, the thing that was keeping him hesitating was the thought that he would somehow be found out and no longer be able to cheer. But after a moment, he figured the risk was low, especially if he only had half a brownie. The effects definitely wouldn't last very long, so he grabbed a brownie from the tray and ripped it in half, placing on half back on the tray and biting into the other half.

He wasn't sure if it was only in his head, but he swore that half an hour later, the effects were definitely kicking in. There was a nice lightness to his head and slight tingle throughout his body. Everything was good and perfect, sitting there in Seungcheol's lap with the alpha occasionally scenting him possessively as he talked to the others sitting around the deck. He giggled a bit as he shifted in Seungcheol's lap until he was able to press his nose to the alpha's scent gland, deeply inhaling his sage scent that only added to the elated feeling he had. Before long he was peppering soft kisses along the expanse of Seungcheol's neck, pressing closer to him.

A quiet chuckle rumbled in Seungcheol's chest, and he nudged Jeonghan out of his neck, causing a slight whine to leave the omega. "We should probably go somewhere more private if you're wanting to do all that." He mumbled. Jeonghan nodded eagerly and climbed out of Seungcheol's lap so fast he stumbled, causing the alpha to chuckle again.

They hurried hand in hand through the party until they found an empty bedroom. Jeonghan barely waited for the door to be closed behind them before throwing his arms around Seungcheol and pulling him into a deep kiss. Seungcheol smiled against Jeonghan's lips as the omega tried to walk them backwards towards the bed. "Are you sure you're okay with this?" Seungcheol asked in between kisses, Jeonghan chasing after his lips with every word. "You're kind of under the influence of something."

"Yeah, you." Jeonghan said. "I'd want to make out with you even without the brownie."

"Just wanting to be sure." Seungcheol said, finally bringing his lips back to Jeonghan's while gently pushing him back onto the bed.

Jeonghan tugged Seungcheol closer as he deepened the kiss, a quiet moan escaping him as his tongue brushed against the alpha's. One of Seungcheol's hands ran over Jeonghan's bare thigh under his cheer skirt, adding a fire to the tingles he already felt under his skin. Jeonghan could feel a tiny trickle of slick leaking out of him as Seungcheol gently squeezed his thigh, and while normally he would get flustered over that and end their makeout session, the weed seemed to take away that slight anxiety as his hips bucked up against Seungcheol as if of their own accord. Seungcheol's hand ran further up Jeonghan's thigh, pausing at the hem of his cheer skirt. "Is this okay?" Seungcheol mumbled and Jeonghan nodded eagerly. Seungcheol slipped his hand under Jeonghan's skirt, over his spankies to palm his ass. "And this?" Jeonghan nodded again and Seungcheol squeezed his ass, pulling another quiet moan from Jeonghan. Seungcheol continued to fondle him before dipping his fingers through the leg hole of his spankies, then his panties, teasing against the bare skin but not moving further. "What about this?" Seungcheol whispered.

"So okay." Jeonghan breathed out.

Seungcheol slipped his fingers completely past Jeonghan's spankies and panties, running them through the slick around Jeonghan's hole. The anticipation built inside of Jeonghan, the need to feel those fingers inside of him, yet it was still like a shock to his system when Seungcheol pressed one inside. Jeonghan's breath hitched, and he tightened his grip on Seungcheol. "You good?" Seungcheol asked and Jeonghan nodded, unable to speak, but he did grind his hips against Seungcheol's hand hoping the alpha would get the hint. He seemed to as he curled his finger inside of Jeonghan, wiggling it around a bit before pressing a second one inside.

Jeonghan continued to move his hips along with the rhythm of Seungcheol's fingers, tiny moans slipping out as Seungcheol buried his face in the crook of his neck. The feeling of the alpha's lips against his skin only heightened everything he was feeling, caused the coil in his core to tighten even more. Seungcheol's fingers suddenly brushed against a certain spot inside of him that had Jeonghan gasping out, his body jerking a bit under the alpha. A low growl rumbled in Seungcheol's chest at that, sending a gush of slick out of Jeonghan as he moved his fingers faster, more intentionally against that spot. The coil continued to tighten, Jeonghan growing more desperate for a release. Then he felt Seungcheol's teeth gently sinking into his scent gland, the alpha once again marking him, and that was all it took to push Jeonghan over the edge. Jeonghan's body tensed so much he was trembling as his orgasm washed over him, his hips still twitching as Seungcheol helped him through his high, before finally relaxing, a nice daze settling over him that added on to the light and tingly feeling from the brownie.

Seungcheol carefully pulled his fingers out of Jeonghan, a quiet whimper leaving the omega at the sudden emptiness. "Still good?" Seungcheol asked, studying Jeonghan's face for any sign of panic or regret. Jeonghan answered by tugging Seungcheol down to kiss him again, pressing close to the alpha once more.

Just as Jeonghan was about to offer to return the favor for his boyfriend, Soonyoung suddenly burst into the room, causing them to jump apart. "It's almost midnight and your house is, like, 15 minutes away from here." Soonyoung informed them, obviously tipsy but not fully drunk.

As Seungcheol drove the omega's to Jeonghan's house, Jeonghan realized that while he might have been feeling the beginning of the effects of the weed brownies, it was only then that it truly set in. The car felt both too big and too small, and the streetlights they passed were mesmerizing. But Jeonghan couldn't even enjoy them due to the sheer panic he felt. "She's gonna know." He whispered, his eyes wide with paranoia.

"She's not gonna know." Soonyoung said. "Just follow my lead and your mom will never know that you had half a weed brownie."

Jeonghan's eyes widened even more. "No, she's gonna know that Seungcheol fingered me!"

Seungcheol made a strangled noise as Soonyoung leaned up from the backseat. "You fingered Jeonghan?"

"Is that really important right now?" Seungcheol asked.

"Yes." Soonyoung stated as Seungcheol pulled into Jeonghan's driveway. "But due to the fact that we are here, I'll just bully the details out of Jeonghan once we're in the safety of his room." He climbed out of the backseat and opened the passenger door to unbuckle Jeonghan and drag him out due to Jeonghan being convinced he could never step foot in his house again. "Okay, here's what we're gonna do." Soonyoung said as he led Jeonghan up to the house. "She's gonna ask us how the party was. We're gonna say it was fun but now we're tired and going to bed, then we're going straight to your room. Not giving her any chance to question us further." He eyed Jeonghan for a moment before reaching out to take down his ponytail. "Let's cover up that hickey before we go in." He adjusted Jeonghan's hair to cover the hickey just enough to make it past his mom before tugging Jeonghan inside.

Jeonghan's mom looked up from the couch and smiled at them. "How was the party?"

"It was fun." Jeonghan said almost robotically.

Thankfully Soonyoung was quick to cover. "We're really tired though so we're gonna go on to bed."

"Alright, goodnight." Jeonghan's mom said as the two 16-year-olds made their way to Jeonghan's bedroom.

As soon as they were in the safety of Jeonghan's room, they quickly changed into their pajamas and flopped into Jeonghan's bed. Just as Jeonghan's paranoia was going away, the omega realizing they truly were safe, Soonyoung turned his head to look at him. "So Seungcheol fingered you at the party?" Jeonghan felt his cheeks heat up. "How was it?"

"So good." Jeonghan said. "I always thought the idea of being fingered was weird, but that was the single greatest thing I've ever experienced."

"Orgasms are amazing, aren't they?" Soonyoung grinned. "So what did you do in return."

Jeonghan's smile dropped a bit and the annoyance he'd felt earlier at the party returned. "Nothing because somebody interrupted."

Soonyoung gasped. "You mean I was a cockblocker? I swear, it was completely unintentional." Jeonghan snorted and shifted in his bed to get more comfortable, the need to sleep taking over. "If you need any tips for when it's your turn, I'm more than happy to oblige."

"I'm sure you are." Jeonghan mumbled, closing his eyes.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan's heart fluttered in his chest as he laid next to Seungcheol on the alpha's bed, their lips meeting repeatedly in soft sweet kisses. Ever since the Jackson Wang party when Seungcheol had fingered him, Jeonghan had been wanting to return the favor, either by a hand job or even a blowjob, but hadn't been sure how to go about it. Then he figured if he did it while in the heat of a makeout session, kind of like how the fingering had occurred, it would cut through his anxiety, and he'd be able to do it. So there they were, and Jeonghan was ready to enact his plan, if only Seungcheol would stop holding back the way he seemed to be doing.

Eventually, Jeonghan decided to take things into his own hands, pressing closer to Seungcheol and parting his lips to deepen the kiss. Seungcheol let out a quiet groan, tugging Jeonghan even closer as he flicked his tongue into the omega's mouth. Smiling into the kiss, Jeonghan pushed down the lingering anxiety as he rested a hand against his boyfriend's chest, slowly trailing it down over his stomach. But the second he reached the alpha's belt-

The sound of the one squeaky floorboard in the hallway had Seungcheol and Jeonghan jumping apart, rushing to grab some of their homework to make it look like that was all they had been doing. The bedroom door crack opened just as they settled into their façade, Seungcheol's mom poking her head in with a smile. "Jeonghan, will you be staying for dinner tonight?'

"I would love to." Jeonghan said, hoping his face wasn't as red as he felt it was. "Let me just text my mom to let her know." Seungcheol's mom nodded and gave the teenage couple another smile before leaving.

***

Seungcheol's hands squeezed Jeonghan's ass, pulling a quiet moan from the omega that was thankfully muffled further by the alpha's lips pressed against his. Jeonghan would have been mortified if his sister overheard them, but that thought was fleeting as Seungcheol broke the kiss to attach his lips to Jeonghan's neck instead. Jeonghan bit his lip to keep his moans from coming out as Seungcheol licked and sucked at his scent gland, his hips shifting of their own accord against Seungcheol's underneath him. As Seungcheol left yet another mark on him, Jeonghan brought his hands to the alpha's belt again, tugging at the buckle to undo it.

"Jeonghan, how many times do I have to tell you this door has to stay open when Seungcheol's over?" Jeonghan just barely threw himself out of Seungcheol's lap, Seungcheol grabbing a blanket to cover his boner, before his mom opened the door.

"Sorry, Eomma." Jeonghan said quickly. "Just a habit." His mom narrowed her eyes at them for a moment before pointedly opening the door more.

Once she was gone, Jeonghan let out a breath, burying his face in his pillow. "I'm just…" Seungcheol carefully climbed out of Jeonghan's nest, leaving the blanket behind but keeping his hand cupped over his crotch. "I'm gonna go to the bathroom."

***

While Jeonghan didn't want to directly ask Soonyoung for advice, as he didn't exactly want his best friend's voice in his had the first time he tried a new sexual act with his boyfriend, that didn't mean he still couldn't follow it. Namely by utilizing one of his favorite hookup spots that he often overheard Soonyoung talking about with some of his other friends. The stairwell in the music complex, where according to Soonyoung no teachers were during lunch time, and no cameras that showed underneath the stairs.

So one day, at lunch, Jeonghan convinced Seungcheol to leave the cafeteria with him, leading the alpha into the music complex. "What are we doing in here?" Seungcheol asked with a slight laugh.

Jeonghan waited until they were safely hidden under the stairs before smiling nervously. "I was hoping to return the favor from the party last week."

Seungcheol's eyes widened, his cheeks taking a pink tint. "Are you sure?"

"I am." Jeonghan said quietly before leaning in to kiss Seungcheol. He kissed his boyfriend to calm his nerves. Then once his anxiety was low enough, he pulled back to lower himself to his knees in front of the alpha.

Before he could do anything else, he heard the doors to the music complex open. He froze in fear, sure they were about to be caught. And they were, but by someone only slightly less mortifying than a teacher. "Oh my god!" Soonyoung exclaimed, dropping the hand of the alpha he was with. "I swear, this time wasn't on purpose either." Jeonghan's face was flaming as Seungcheol helped him to his feet, the alpha shielding him as he led him back out of the building while murmuring words of comfort.

***

Two weeks after the party, Conway had once again won, that time 31-21 against Cabot on their own turf. Seungcheol's parents had invited Jeonghan's family to join them for a celebratory dinner at TGI Fridays following the game. Jeonghan had insisted on riding with Seungcheol to the restaurant, and now the two teenagers were taking their sweet time, enjoying having a moment alone in the backseat of Seungcheol's car, knowing that they could blame post-game traffic if their parents questioned why it took them so long to get to the restaurant.

Then it hit Jeonghan that was the perfect time. No one around as the parking lot emptied. No chance of being interrupted. He pulled out of the kiss, panting slightly. "I wanna return the favor now."

"Are you sure?" Seungcheol asked. "I mean, I know you said you were before but…sometimes things change."

Jeonghan shook his head slightly. "I really want to."

Seungcheol was obviously trying to hide just how eager he actually was as he helped Jeonghan undo his belt and unbutton his jeans. When the alpha pulled his dick out of his underwear, Jeonghan's breath caught in his throat. He'd had somewhat of an idea of Seungcheol's size, having felt a faint outline whenever the alpha got a boner while they were making out. But it was still a bit bigger than he'd pictured, and a part of him worried about if he'd be able to fit it all in his mouth. He had a fleeting thought of it fitting somewhere else, but he quickly suppressed that as he knew he was nowhere to that point yet. "I'd like to reiterate that you don’t have to do anything right now." Seungcheol said softly, brushing a strand of Jeonghan's hair that had escaped his ponytail out of his face.

"I know." Jeonghan smiled and leaned over to give Seungcheol a soft kiss. When he pulled back he gently wrapped his hand around Seungcheol, eyes widening slightly at the way it pulsed slightly in his grip. He gave a couple of experimental strokes, the quiet groan Seungcheol let out boosting his confidence enough that he shifted his position to be able to lean down, hesitating only a second before wrapping his lips around the tip.

"Fuck~" Seungcheol breathed out, a soft moan following as Jeonghan slowly took more of Seungcheol in. He felt Seungcheol's hand resting on the back of his head, not providing any pressure, but just the feeling of it assured Jeonghan and encouraged him to go deeper. Then he felt the tip hitting the back of his throat and he couldn't help but gag slightly in surprise, pulling off quickly. "You okay?" Seungcheol asked in concern.

Jeonghan nodded. "I'm fine. Just getting used to it." He took a deep breath before leaning down again, taking Seungcheol into his mouth once more.

He felt Seungcheol holding back as he bobbed his head, doing what he felt he was supposed to do with his tongue, trying to avoid scraping his teeth, and suckling lightly when it felt right. After a moment, he felt Seungcheol twitch in his mouth and the alpha's fingers suddenly lightly gripped Jeonghan's hair, not tugging but more like a warning. "I'm about to cum." Seungcheol grunted. Jeonghan bobbed his head a couple more times before taking as much of Seungcheol into his mouth as he could, keeping his mouth sealed around him as he felt something hot and wet shooting onto his tongue and against the back of his throat. When he was sure Seungcheol was done from the way the alpha relaxed, he carefully pulled off of him and swallowed, glad to find that it didn’t taste as bad as some of the stories he'd heard. "You okay?" Seungcheol asked, panting slightly.

"I'm perfect." Jeonghan assured him.

"Yes you were." Seungcheol said, making Jeonghan blush as he tucked himself back into his underwear. Then he reached out to cup Jeonghan's cheek, pulling him into a sweet kiss.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan was busy organizing his planner for the upcoming week as the daily announcements were read over the intercom, only half listening to the student listing off homecoming activities, the rules for the dance, and so forth. "And now for the all-important Homecoming Court voting! Your teachers will now be passing out a slip of paper with the nominees for your grade level listed out. Circle three omegas you feel best represent your class or write one in if you think there's a good fit that is not already listed." Sure enough, Jeonghan's English teacher walked around the room, setting slips of paper down on each desk. When one was placed in front of Jeonghan, he moved to circle three names at random only to freeze at the sight of his own name listed among the nominees.

"Who the hell would nominate me?" Jeonghan asked his friends, still in disbelief by the time lunch rolled around.

"I would." Seungcheol said and Jeonghan shot him a look. "I didn't but I would." Jeonghan rolled his eyes slightly only to smile when Seungcheol leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek.

"What's the big deal?" Jun asked. "Isn't being on homecoming court, like, right on track with being a cheerleader?"

"Maybe for the people who do it for the popularity." Jeonghan shrugged. "But you know I don't care about that crap. I just wanna enjoy the dance with my boyfriend and best friends."

"And remember how the two of you shared your first kiss at homecoming last year." Soonyoung said dramatically, causing Jeonghan to toss some rice at him. "Who says you can't do that when you're on Homecoming Court?"

Jeonghan shot him a look. "Because if I end up on it, I'll have to do all the city homecoming activities and I'll probably be too tired to even go to the dance. Not to mention everyone knows that the Homecoming Court ends up skipping the dance to get drunk half the time anyway."

Jun snorted. "Some representation."

"It's just a nomination." Seungcheol said. "What are the odds you'll get voted on anyway?"

***

"And moving on to our Junior Maids, starting with Ashley Davis!"

"It's just a nomination, he said." Jeonghan muttered as the announcer proceeded to read out Ashley's bio. "What are the odds you'll get voted on anyway, he said."

Seungcheol gently nudged him. "Hey, at least this means people like you."

Jeonghan glared at his boyfriend. "You're lucky I love you."

"And I love you." Seungcheol smiled and snuck a quick kiss in a brief moment where the teachers supervising the Homecoming Court and their escorts before they walked out into the arena during their presentation weren't paying attention.

"At least you got assigned my escort." Jeonghan said, feeling incredibly grateful that senior football players were always the homecoming court escorts and especially thankful that Seungcheol was a senior football player. "Can you imagine if I had to walk out with Michael Harris?" He looked at the alpha in question at the corner of his eye and involuntarily shuddered at the sight of him standing a bit too close to his assigned Homecoming Court maid.

"I never would have let that happen." Seungcheol assured him, rubbing the omega's back.

Four names later, Jeonghan's name was finally called and he and Seungcheol began walking arm in arm around the path on the arena floor that had been laid out for them during the rehearsal that morning before school Seungcheol's solid form next to him kept Jeonghan's anxiety at bay, and as they walked, the lights and the crowd of their fellow students and the parents who had shown up for the Homecoming Assembly disappeared, leaving just the two of them. And Jeonghan couldn't help but imagine another scenario where they two of them might be walking down a designated path arm in arm while he wore a fancy dress.

Chapter Text

Soonyoung groaned loudly as he met Jeonghan outside the gym for lunch like always, since the cafeteria had yet to be finished in time for the school year to start, leaving the students limited places to eat lunch. "Why can't it be Thanksgiving break already?"

"We literally have half a day left." Jeonghan laughed, looping his arm around Soonyoung's and tugging him into the gym.

"Still too long." Soonyoung pouted. "And I would like for us to have an extended sleepover like we used to but no, you'll probably be spending every moment with your boyfriend."

"I actually will not." Jeonghan said. "I'm unlucky enough that my heat's supposed to happen over the first part of break."

Soonyoung blinked at him. "So you will be spending the break with Seungcheol."

Jeonghan gave him an exasperated look. "I'm not spending my heat with Seungcheol."

"And why not?" Soonyoung asked.

"Because first of all, my first time is not going to be when I'm in heat." Jeonghan said. "Second of all, my mom wouldn't allow it. And third of all, my heats haven't even grown sexual yet."

"Really?" Soonyoung looked at Jeonghan in surprise. "My last two heats were sexual." He then shrugged. "Must be because you're still a virgin."

"Or it's because I just haven't reached that point developmentally yet." Jeonghan retorted, pulling Soonyoung up the bleachers to where Jun had already claimed a spot for them to eat.

Seungcheol joined them a few minutes later as Jeonghan was popping the first roll of his kimbap in his mouth. The alpha instantly wrapped his arm around Jeonghan's waist, tugging the omega closer to him. "I've been thinking of things for us to do over the break." He said, pressing a kiss to Jeonghan's cheek.

Jeonghan tried to quickly swallow his kimbap to respond but Soonyoung beat him to it. "Oh, don't you know? He'll be in heat over the first part of the break." Jeonghan shot Soonyoung an annoyed look.

"Then I guess we'll just have to do these things after then." Seungcheol said.

"For sure." Jeonghan nodded. "I'll text you as soon as I'm in the clear." Seungcheol responded by pressing a gentle kiss to the omega's lips that had Jeonghan smiling, his cheeks flushing.

***

Jeonghan whimpered in discomfort, clutching his stomach as he rolled over in his nest to try to find a more comfortable spot. But nothing seemed right that day, which was odd as his nests were usually perfect. There was a knock on his bedroom door and all he managed was a loud groan in response. That seemed to be enough as Jeonghan's mom ducked into the room, closing the door behind her. "I have something for you." She said.

"Is it a knife to cut my uterus out of me?" Jeonghan asked.

"No." His mom said before holding up a gift bag. "Seungcheol dropped off a little heat care package for you."

Jeonghan sat up quickly but soon regretted it as his stomach churned, pain racking through his body at the sudden movement. He pushed through it, though, in order to accept the bag and look through it. Inside were some of Jeonghan's favorite snacks, a few new stuffies, some packs of tea--one of which he instantly gave to his mom for her to go make for him--and a hoodie that was so drenched in sage that Jeonghan knew Seungcheol had freshly scented it just for him.

As his mom left to go make him some tea, Jeonghan laid back down in his nest with Seungcheol's hoodie in his arms, his face buried in the fabric as he breathed in deeply. A tingle began to form in the pit of his stomach, and the longer he took in Seungcheol's scent, the more prominent that tingle grew until it morphed into a burning sensation that quickly enveloped Jeonghan. He whimpered into the fabric as slick started gushing out of him, more than he was used to during his heats, and an ache settled deep inside him, one that he somehow knew could only be satisfied by one thing. But he didn't have that thing, so settled for shoving his hand into his panties, sloppily thrusting two fingers inside of himself until a less than satisfying orgasm rocked through him.

Although that weak orgasm was nowhere near enough for Jeonghan, it had eased that burning sensation and cleared his head enough that he was aware of two thoughts in his mind. The first was that Soonyoung was most definitely wrong about needing to not be a virgin to not have sexual heats and how he couldn't wait to rub it in his best friend's face. The second was that he desperately wanted to have sex with Seungcheol.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan was in a similar predicament as to when he was wanting to give Seungcheol a blowjob for the first time. He had no idea how to go about it. The only thing he did know was that he didn't want it to end up like his first blowjob, taking place in the backseat of Seungcheol's car. He wanted his first time to be somewhere comfortable, preferably his own bed, but with the way his mom was about him and Seungcheol being alone in his room, he knew that would never happen. So his second choice was Seungcheol's bed, but while he knew the alpha's parents were much more lax when it came to boundaries for the young couple, he didn't think he would be comfortable having sex when Seungcheol's parents were in the house with the ability to catch them. So it seemed he would just have to wait for one of those rare times that they were left completely alone at Seungcheol's house.

The opportunity provided itself much sooner than Jeonghan had expected. On Christmas, after finishing his festivities with his own family, Jeonghan had been invited to spend the afternoon and evening with the Chois, but of course, Seungcheol and Jeonghan had ended up holing themselves up in the alpha's room. They were cuddled up watching a movie when there was a gentle knock on the door, and they both looked up as Seungcheol's mom poked her head inside. "Your dad and I are heading to take some dinner to your grandparents'."

Seungcheol sat up slightly in confusion. "I thought they didn't want us coming today since Halmeoni's sick."

"Yeah, your dad and I are taking them some food and just see if they need anything." Seungcheol's mom said before turning her attention on Jeonghan. "It'll be so late when we get back that you'll already be back home, so it was nice seeing you today."

"You too." Jeonghan said a bit distractedly, his brain working to process the fact that he and Seungcheol were truly about to be left alone for a minimum of five hours, most likely more since he was sure it wasn't going to be a pop in and leave visit. Was he dreaming? Was he actually about to be in a prime position to be able to have sex with his boyfriend for the first time? He faintly heard the sound of a car starting followed by the garage door opening then closing, and that cemented it for him.

Seungcheol let out a noise of surprise as Jeonghan pounced on him, crashing their lips together. Then he chuckled, resting his hands lightly on the small of Jeonghan's back. "Someone's excited." He murmured, his pinky lightly tracing the strip of bare skin where the omega's shirt had started to ride up.

"I guess that's one way to describe it." Jeonghan giggled. He continued to kiss Seungcheol, letting the alpha's warmth and familiarity calm the anxiety trying to bubble up his chest. When he was sure he could push through it, he pulled back enough to whisper, "I think we should have sex."

Seungcheol's eyes widened in surprise and his grip on Jeonghan tightened a bit. "You think or…or you want to?"

"I want to." Jeonghan said, a tiny smile tugging at his lips.

Seungcheol brought Jeonghan in for another kiss but pulled away after only a few seconds. "I don't have any condoms." He said.

"What about your parents?" Jeonghan asked.

"I don't think they use them." Seungcheol shook his head. "Based on the last time I had to look for condoms."

Jeonghan hadn't even considered before that it would only be his first time. That Seungcheol may have been sexually active with a previous girlfriend or boyfriend before ever meeting Jeonghan. And knowing that had that bubble of anxiety swelling again. Jeonghan did his best to swallow it down, plastering on a smile once more. "Well, I guess that's what my mom put me on birth control for. The almost nightly vomiting won't be for nothing anymore."

Seungcheol gently cupped Jeonghan's cheek, rubbing his thumb over it. "Are you sure?" Instead of answering verbally, Jeonghan leaned in and softly pressed his lips to Seungcheol's.

The kiss quickly grew in passion, Seungcheol rolling Jeonghan over so the omega was on his back. As Seungcheol's hands slipped under Jeonghan's shirt, pushing it up slightly, the anxiety he was trying to keep at bay grew more prominent. But Jeonghan did his best to ignore it, focusing instead on the gentle way Seungcheol handled him as he slowly undressed him. As he was exposed to Seungcheol for the first time, Jeonghan couldn't help but feel shy, feel the urge to cover himself, but Seungcheol was there to press soft kisses across his chest and down his stomach, making him feel like the most beautiful omega in the world.

If only that feeling stuck around as Seungcheol undressed himself and crawled over Jeonghan. "Are you ready?" Seungcheol asked softly. Anxiety had Jeonghan's throat thick, rendering him unable to speak so he settled for just nodding. Seungcheol leaned down to kiss Jeonghan once more, settling in between the omega's legs.

The second Jeonghan felt Seungcheol's penis pressing against his entrance, the anxiety claimed him, causing his body to tense up and his legs to try to instinctually close. "I can't!" Seungcheol immediately pulled back but instead of feeling relieved, Jeonghan burst into tears, covering his face to try to hide it from Seungcheol.

"Hey, hey, it's okay!" Seungcheol said softly, trying to pull Jeonghan's hands away from his face. "There's no need to cry. You're okay." He managed to move Jeonghan's hands and began gently wiping his tears away. "We don't have to."

"But I want to!" Jeonghan began to sob harder. Seungcheol held Jeonghan closely, rubbing his back as he gradually calmed down. When Jeonghan regained the ability to speak, the first thing he said was, "I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to be sorry for." Seungcheol said, drying Jeonghan's face with his thumbs.

Jeonghan opened his mouth to argue but became highly aware of the fact that they were still extremely naked. "Can you get me my clothes?" Seungcheol was quick to grab them and hand them to Jeonghan before grabbing his own. As Jeonghan began to redress himself, his phone started buzzing on Seungcheol's nightstand. He picked it up and saw his mom's name on the screen. "The universe hates me." He muttered before answering the call and putting the phone to his ear. "I’m about to leave Seungcheol's house now to head home."

"Don't." His mom said, confusing Jeonghan. "I don't want you driving in this weather."

"Weather?" Jeonghan furrowed his eyebrows and walked over to Seungcheol's window, looking through the blinds to see the grass starting to turn white from the sleet and snow coming down. That was odd. It usually didn't do that until February, January at the earliest.

"Stay at Seungcheol's tonight and come home in the morning."

"Alright, I will. See you tomorrow, Eomma." They exchanged I love yous before ending the call.

As Jeonghan turned to face Seungcheol, the alpha was tapping at his phone. "My parents are staying at my grandparents' tonight because of the weather." Seungcheol informed Jeonghan. Which was perfect. Because Jeonghan totally wanted to be stuck alone with his boyfriend who he'd just led on into believing they would have sex that night. "I'll go make us some hot chocolate." Seungcheol leaned in to press a kiss to Jeonghan's cheek and Jeonghan hated the way that he tensed at the action.

Soon they were sitting on the couch with their mugs of cocoa, Jeonghan wanting nothing more to cuddle into his boyfriend's side but not feeling like he was allowed to due to the circumstances. "I really am sorry." He said quietly.

"And you still have nothing to be sorry for." Seungcheol said.

"I told you I was ready to have sex." Jeonghan said. "And then I changed my mind at the last second."

Seungcheol shook his head. "There's nothing wrong with you changing your mind." He set his cocoa to the side and reached out to pull Jeonghan into his arms. "Like I said it prom, it'll happen one day when we're both ready and that day's not today. Maybe it'll be tomorrow or next year or when we're 80."

Jeonghan managed to laugh a bit at that. "Well, I don't want to wait that long." Seungcheol smiled at the sight of Jeonghan cheering up a bit and leaned in to press a kiss to his forehead. "It was when you said you'd looked for condoms before." Jeonghan was surprised at himself for saying that, but he didn't shy away like he normally would, although he did keep his gaze on his cocoa. "It made me realize that you're experienced and I'm not and I got in my head."

Seungcheol was quiet for a moment before responding. "It was one time a few months before I moved here. Right after my parents broke the news actually."

Jeonghan lifted his gaze to meet Seungcheol's. "With that rude cheerleader from last year?"

"Yes, Brittany." Seungcheol confirmed and Jeonghan couldn't help the way he scrunched his nose. "It lasted, like, three seconds, and then we broke up a few days later. So not sure you really have to worry about my 'experience'."

Another tiny laugh escaped Jeonghan. "I guess that's good to know for the future."

By the time they were ready to go to bed for the night, all awkwardness from their failed attempt at having sex for the first time was gone, making way for a new type of awkwardness. "So is Seungmin's old bed made up or should we scrounge up some sheets?" Jeonghan asked.

"Or you could sleep in my room." Seungcheol said, making Jeonghan's eyes widen a bit. "I mean, it's not like we have any parents here telling us we're not allowed.

"O-okay." Jeonghan nodded, watching Seungcheol climb into his bed before hesitantly joining him. As they got settled, it was like second nature the way Seungcheol's arms wrapped around Jeonghan while Jeonghan rested his head on the alpha's chest. And as Jeonghan started to drift off to sleep, blanketed in Seungcheol's warmth and his comforting sage scent, he couldn't help but think that's where he was always meant to be.

Waking up in the morning, the first thought Jeonghan had was that he always wanted to wake up in his alpha's arms, covered in his scent. He snuggled closer to Seungcheol, trying to drag out when he had to get up. But the second he tried to wiggle his feet in between Seungcheol's to warm them up, Seungcheol suddenly jumped up. "Shit!" He exclaimed, nearly falling out of the bed. "What was that?"

Jeonghan pouted at him. "My feet are cold."

"So put on some socks." Seungcheol said.

"Socks in bed?" Jeonghan scrunched his nose. "Why do you hate me?"

Seungcheol shifted closer to Jeonghan. "If I hated you, would I do this?" He pressed his lips to Jeonghan's in a soft kiss, gently cupping his face.

Jeonghan hummed into the kiss. "Clearly since you had the audacity to tell me to wear socks in bed." Seungcheol dropped one hand from Jeonghan's face to pinch his waist, making Jeonghan squeal in laughter and try to squirm away from him.

Chapter Text

Jeonghan was texting Soonyoung and Jun in their group chat, the two omegas interrogating the lone alpha over the new omega he was apparently talking to and thinking about formally courting, when there was a knock on his bedroom door. He looked up as his mom pushed open the door, holding up a familiar little pill and glass of water. Jeonghan threw his head back and groaned. "Well, if I could trust you to take it on your own, I wouldn't have to do this." She said as Jeonghan tried to bury himself in his nest.

"I don't need it!" Jeonghan whined, pulling the blanket over his head.

His mom ripped the blanket off of him and held the birth control pill out to him, a stern expression on her face that said not to argue. Pouting, Jeonghan sat up and took the pill out of his mom's hand, placing it on his tongue. Then he took the glass of water from her and took a drink to swallow the pill down, shuddering at the ickiness already forming in the back of his throat. "See, it's not so bad." She leaned down to press a kiss to the 17-year old's forehead before leaving the room.

The bad part, though, came like clockwork a couple of hours later when Jeonghan's stomach began lurching. He carefully climbed out of bed, trying not to disturb his stomach any more than it already was, before hurrying to the bathroom to get to the toilet before he threw up. When he was finished throwing up, he brushed his teeth before storming out to the living room where his parents were doing their own thing while the TV played at a low volume as background noise. "I am not having sex with Seungcheol!" He exclaimed.

His dad slowly looked up from his phone but didn't say anything as he knew the outburst was directed towards his mate. "I believe you, honey." Jeonghan's mom said as she turned a page in her book.

"Then why do you continue to torture me?" Jeonghan asked.

"Jeonghan, I am not torturing you." His mom said in exasperation. "I'm having you take birth control to keep you safe if you decide to take that step with Seungcheol."

"But I'm not having sex with him right now." Jeonghan reiterated. "And there's no issues with my heats that would need to be fixed with birth control. So there's no actual reason for me to be taking it!" His mom sighed wearily. "Eomma, I'm tired of being constantly nauseous and throwing up nearly every night! I don't like the side effects! Please let me stop taking it!" He literally got on his knees by the couch and clasped his hands together. "I'm begging you! No more!"

"Oh, quit that!" She lightly swatted at Jeonghan with her book.

Jeonghan gave her his best puppy dog eyes. "If you let me stop taking it now, I promise I will tell you if Seungcheol and I ever do decide to have sex and go back on it then."

His mom studied him for a moment before rolling her eyes. "Alright fine."

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Jeonghan threw himself at his mother in a hug. "You're the best eomma ever!"

"Well, that's a new one." She chuckled, returning the hug before pushing him off. "Go to bed. It's a school night."

"Goodnight, Eomma." Jeonghan climbed to his feet and skipped over to his dad's chair and leaned down to also hug him. "Goodnight, Appa." Then he returned to his bedroom, happy that the birth control battle was finally over.

Chapter Text

When Jeonghan left his English class, Seungcheol was already right there outside the classroom waiting patiently for him. "What, did you run all the way down here from the third floor?" Jeonghan asked in an amused tone.

"I said I wanted to spend every second of Valentine's Day with you." Seungcheol said, taking Jeonghan's hand in his and intertwining their fingers. "If I could, I would just follow you around to your classes instead of going to mine."

"Whipped." Jeonghan snorted. Seungcheol didn't seem to care, though, as he glanced around the hallway to make sure no teachers were looking before softly pressing his lips to Jeonghan's for a few seconds.

They headed to the cafeteria for lunch and found Jun already at the table with his new girlfriend hanging all over him. "Hey, Junhui." Jeonghan greeted him as he and Seungcheol sat down, Seungcheol's left arm immediately slipping between Jeonghan's back and the omega's chair to wrap around his waist. "You're very touchy today." Jeonghan directed to his boyfriend.

"Am I not allowed to show you my affection?" Seungcheol asked, punctuating his question with a kiss to Jeonghan's shoulder before using his free hand to pull his lunchbox out of his backpack. Jeonghan watched Seungcheol struggle to open his lunchbox with only one hand in amusement as he dug into his daily kimbap.

Soonyoung arrived with a groan. "My parents decided not to go out for Valentine's Day this year, meaning I get no date this year. My life sucks."

"Poor you." Jeonghan said flatly.

"Well, I've gotta live vicariously through the resident couples." Soonyoung rested his elbows on the table and propped his chin in his hand. "What are y'all doing tonight?"

Jeonghan swallowed his bite of food before answering. "Seungcheol and I are going to see Beautiful Creatures tonight."

Soonyoung gasped. "I love those books! Can I third wheel?"

"No." Seungcheol said.

"Fine then." Soonyoung huffed before turning to Jun. "What about you two?"

Jun opened his mouth to answer but his girlfriend, Hannah, beat him to it. "That's private."

Soonyoung gave her a knowing look. "Right." He winked before finally pulling out his lunch.

Hannah rolled her eyes before shaking Jun's arm. "Lovebug, let's go talk about what we're doing away from prying ears."

"But I'm eating lunch with my friends." Jun said.

"Now." Hannah said firmly, tugging on Jun's arm until he sighed and packed up what remained of his lunch.

As soon as they were gone, Jeonghan and Soonyoung burst into a fit of giggles. "'Lovebug'?" Jeonghan asked through his laughter.

"Jun's on his way to losing his virginity before you." Soonyoung said. "And I'm surprised to say I'd prefer he not."

Jeonghan rolled his eyes slightly just as Seungcheol squeezed him around the waist. "Why don't you have any cute nicknames for me?"

"What?" Jeonghan let out another tiny laugh as he looked over at his boyfriend, finding the alpha pouting. "You want me to call you 'lovebug'?"

"No, that's gross." Seungcheol scrunched his nose. "But something that's special just between you and me."

Jeonghan popped another kimbap roll, chewing it thoughtfully as he ran through all possible nicknames. Finally, he said, "Daddu."

Seungcheol blinked a few times. "What the fuck is a Daddu?"

"You." Jeonghan smiled and poked Seungcheol on the cheek.

Soonyoung grinned. "You know what Daddu sounds like?"

Jeonghan's smile dropped as he gave his best friend a hard stare. "Don't say it."

Before Soonyoung could say it, Jun suddenly reappeared, alone that time, and began unpacking his lunch once more. "What happened to Hannah?" Soonyoung asked.

"I broke up with her." Jun said.

"What?" Jeonghan asked. "Why?"

Jun shrugged. "She wanted me to stop being friends with y'all."

Jeonghan scrunched his nose while Soonyoung scoffed. "Ew."

"Good riddance."

"Better off without her, I say."