Work Text
Namjoon Kim was an enigma, Seokjin decided as he chopped carrots for dinner. He was a walking contradiction. First when Seokjin had opened the door, he'd immediately noticed that Namjoon was objectively the most attractive alpha he'd ever seen. Perfect body proportions, not too much muscle, very nice-looking face, and his scent was strong--almost overpowering--and full of what Seokjin assumed would have been a high ranked alpha back in the ancient times when packs were still the norm. Then Namjoon had come inside the house and was very timid, awkward even, as he greeted Taehyung and met Jihoon for the first time.But now, as Namjoon sat in the living room with Taehyung, their parents, Jungkook, and Jiwoo--who was entertaining herself with some farm animal figurines--all of that shyness was nowhere to be seen. "So how long have you and Jungkook known each other?" Seokjin's mother asked, her eyes shining the way they only did when she found someone charming or endearing."Pretty much since Jungkook was born." Namjoon answered. "Our families have always been close, they go to the same church, so it was kind of inevitable for us to become friends.""I thought you didn't have a religion." Taehyung mused with furrowed eyebrows."I don't." Namjoon said simply but didn't offer any elaboration.Seokjin focused on his cooking as the conversation continued until the baby monitor came to life with the sound of Jihoon waking up. "Oh, let's go see the puppy!" His mother squealed, following Jungkook to the bedroom to see Jihoon. His father was close behind while Taehyung stayed in the living room to play with Jiwoo.Namjoon, however, sat a bit awkwardly on the couch as if he didn't know what to do with himself before finally standing up and heading over to where Seokjin was working. "So is it common for you to get pushed off to the side to cook while everyone else talks?""I wouldn't say I'm being pushed off to the side." Seokjin said as pushed the diced carrots to the side to begin mincing some garlic. "Normally Jungkook and Taehyung sit at the table to keep me company, as you can see it's not big enough to accommodate a group this large."The alpha glanced at the tiny four-seater table before turning back to Seokjin. "Would you like some help?"Seokjin looked up in surprise. "You want to help?" Namjoon just nodded sincerely. "Uh…okay. You can chop this onion." He got out another cutting board and knife for the alpha and set them in front of him before passing the onion. However, the second Namjoon picked up the knife to begin the task, Seokjin swore he was having a heart attack. He let out a yelp and reached out to grab the alpha's wrist, stopping him."What?" Namjoon asked innocently."Why would you ever hold a knife like that?" Seokjin asked.Embarrassment filled Namjoon's features and he looked down at his feet. "No one's ever taught me."Well now Seokjin felt a bit bad for how harsh his tone had probably come out. "Here," Seokjin showed him how to safely hold the knife and even guided him through the first few cuts before leaving him to dice the onion on his own. "So no one's taught you how to cook?" Seokjin asked as he began sauteing the somewhat diced onions.Namjoon shook his head, still lingering around the kitchen. "My grandparents are very conservative and think it's the omega's job to do the bulk of the cooking, and basic stuff they expected me to just know how to do.""In that case, fuck your grandparents." Seokjin said before quickly adding. "I mean if that's also what you were thinking." Namjoon's chuckle assured Seokjin that he hadn't overstepped. "So you eat a lot of takeout, I'm assuming?""Pretty much since Jungkook's been staying here." Namjoon confirmed."How rich are you that you can afford that?" Seokjin asked, earning another chuckle from the alpha--a sound he was very quickly learning he enjoyed immensely. "What do you do?""I'm a medical assistant at a dermatology clinic." Namjoon answered. "They pay decently, but if I didn't share an apartment with Jungkook I would probably be starving at this point. Plus, I do have a DashPass so I don't have to deal with delivery fees, and I tend to order stuff I can put in the fridge and eat the next day too.""Smart." Seokjin mused. "Have you ever thought about learning to cook though?"Namjoon sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I've been considering it since it's very likely that Jungkook may move out when our lease runs out in August…but I also have a very demanding job so it's not often that I have enough energy to do something like that."The alpha's tone was similar to the time Jungkook was explaining the spoons theory to him and Taehyung to describe what he and other autistic people meant when they said that they didn't have the energy to do stuff, so he nodded in understanding before pointing to the other end of the island where the diced carrots and cauliflower rice were sitting. "Do you mind adding this to the pot for me? I don't want the onion to burn from not moving it around."Namjoon continued to linger in the kitchen and watch Seokjin cook their dinner until it was finally finished. Then he helped the omega serve portions of the soup and carry the bowls and spoons over to the living room where everyone ate around the coffee table while Jihoon rested in his rocker chair while mouthing at the pink bunny toy Jungkook had gifted him after his birth from his own puphood. It was when everyone was close to being done that Namjoon got a text, cursing under his breath as he read it. "What's up?" Jungkook asked."Jackson has a family emergency and can't pick me up to take me back to Conway." Namjoon sighed."I'll drive you." Jungkook offered, but the bags under his eyes from being a father to a toddler and a newborn showed that it probably wasn't the best idea for him to do a nearly hour and a half round trip drive."No, I'll do it." Seokjin blurted out, making everyone look at him in a mixture of confusion in surprise. "Well if the options are two sleep deprived parents, two elderly people exhausted from their flight, and me, then I think it's obvious who should drive him."Seokjin's mother playfully swatted at his arm. "How dare you call us elderly!"And that's how Seokjin found himself exiting onto I-40 headed to Conway after cleaning up from dinner--with Namjoon's help since the alpha had insisted. "No, I don't plan on learning how to drive." Namjoon blurted out, breaking the silence they'd been in since pulling out of the driveway."Okay." Seokjin said, blinking a bit in confusion. "I wasn't going to ask.""I thought you would since you asked about cooking." Namjoon said sheepishly. "And people tend to hound me about it.""Honestly I just assumed your car was in the shop or something, not that you don't drive." Seokjin admitted. "Do you mind me asking why?"Namjoon shrugged. "I had a panic attack when I was 16 while practicing driving, then it took until I was 25 to be able to even consider sitting in the driver's seat again, and that was only because I felt bad about Jungkook having to work his daily schedule around taking me to work and picking me up. By the time I was ready to take the test, covid had shut down everything so I couldn't. Then Jungkook and I moved to Conway together, and since I can bike everywhere there--or use Uber if it's raining--and don't often leave the city, I figured there was no need anymore. I don't like doing stuff that gets my anxiety up."Seokjin hummed thoughtfully. "If I didn't have to transport a lot of stuff for work, I would probably bike too.""What do you do?" Namjoon inquired."I'm an event planner." Seokjin answered. "I dabble in all kinds of events depending on need, but I try to focus on weddings.""Why?" Namjoon then asked, his tone full of curiosity."I'm not sure." Seokjin said honestly. "I guess…I guess I just like what weddings are supposed to represent. A celebration of the promise to spend the rest of your life with one person." He sighed then. "If only more people took them that seriously."Namjoon made a small noise of agreement. "That's why if I do ever get married, I'd rather not have a huge ceremony. To put that much effort into something that is just as likely to end as it is to last.""Actually, Arkansas divorce rate is only 18%." Seokjin pointed out, earning a look from Namjoon."Still one of the highest divorce rates in the country.""Touché."The rest of the drive went by in silence, Seokjin pondering over just who Namjoon was and why he was so intriguing. Then as he pulled into the parking lot of Namjoon and Jungkook's apartment, an idea that would help him get to know Namjoon better and answer those questions in his mind popped into his head. "Does cooking get your anxiety up?""Only when people yell at me for not already knowing stuff." Namjoon deadpanned.Seokjin instantly felt his ears heat up. "I'm sorry about that." He said sincerely, Namjoon waving his apology off. "Do you…would you like me to teach you how?" Namjoon looked at Seokjin in surprise. "I mean, if you want, you could get my number from Jungkook and whenever you have the energy to cook something, you could text me and I'll come teach you something simple."Namjoon was quiet for a moment before nodding. "I'll think about it." He climbed out of the car and thanked Seokjin for the ride before heading into his apartment.
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"No!" Yoongi practically yelled at the TV, Hoseok laughing at him from where he was sitting in the recliner next to the couch. "Come on, Ref, that was an obvious foul!"Jimin padded into the living room at that moment, a glare trained on Yoongi. "I swear to god, if you wake him up when I just got him to sleep…" He grumbled, opening their pup monitor app on his phone and setting it on the coffee table with it propped up so they could easily see the feed from the camera trained on Woojin's bedside bassinet. He then proceeded to climb into Yoongi's lap and grab the beer bottle out of the alpha's hand.Yoongi raised an eyebrow at him. "Excuse you, that's mine.""Yeah, and I birthed your son." Jimin retorted, holding eye contact with Yoongi as he chugged half the beer in one go while Yoongi feigned exasperation.Hoseok laughed at the exchange before confusion hit him. "Wait, I didn't know you could drink beer if you're breastfeeding. Doesn't it get in your milk?"Jimin waved his hand dismissively. "Woojin's sleeping six hours consistently at night now--unless somebody is too loud while watching his games." He shot Yoongi a look. "So any alcohol will be out of my milk by the time I have to feed him again.""Omega's bodies are both weird and fascinating." Hoseok mused as he turned back to the game."Who's winning?" Jimin asked as he leaned back against Yoongi's chest, finally handing the beer bottle back to the alpha now that it was nearly empty."It just started, but the Trail Blazers are up by a couple points." Yoongi answered.They watched the game in mostly silence--save for Yoongi's commentary and critiquing--until Hoseok remembered something he'd been wanting to ask his friends. "I have questions about what living in Conway is like."Yoongi pointed to Jimin without even looking away from the TV. "He's the one to ask."Jimin snorted, pressing a kiss to Yoongi's cheek before turning to Hoseok. "What's up?""I'm starting a new job for an elderly omega in Morrilton on Monday." Hoseok explained. "And I know that making the drive from Little Rock and back every day is gonna be draining, so since my lease is gonna be up in a couple of months, I've been considering moving closer to Morrilton or maybe even to it.""Well, I do gotta warn you that rent is steep as fuck here." Jimin deadpanned. "It is the city of colleges after all, high demand from the college students moving here for school. But the utilities kind of make up for it because they're all bundled through Conway Corp and are fairly cheap compared to the rest of the state. Morrilton's rent will probably be cheaper, but there's not as much to do there." He stole Yoongi's beer again to take another sip."You know any good neighborhoods that are worth the rent?"Jimin opened his mouth to answer but couldn't as Yoongi started yelling at the TV again, specifically at the referee for making a bad call. Then his phone showed Woojin beginning to stir, the four-month old's face scrunching up as he began to fuss. All three of them held their breaths, hoping the pup would settle back down, but instead he began to cry. Jimin glared at Yoongi. "I told you." He stood up and tugged Yoongi off the couch. "You woke him up, you can put him back to sleep." He pushed the alpha in the direction of the bedrooms before flopping on the couch again.***Hoseok hurried up the porch to get out of the light drizzle of rain, knocking on the door at exactly 7:00--the time he was schedule to be there. It only took a moment for the door to open, revealing a petite dark haired, tan skinned female omega who seemed to be a few years younger than him. "Hi, you must be Hoseok." Hoseok nodded to confirm he was, indeed, himself. "I'm Becky, Manuela's granddaughter.""It's nice to meet you." Hoseok said sincerely before following her into the house, slipping his shoes off to avoid tracking mud inside."I was hoping to be able to take a day off work to kind of show you the ropes around here, but unfortunately too many other teachers had already requested to extend their spring break by the time I got to it." Becky said with a small chuckle. "But you came highly recommended, and I've heard nothing but good things about you, so I'm sure you'll do fine.""Remind me to thank the people who have been praising me." Hoseok said, making Becky laugh again."Okay, so Abuela is usually awake by now, but sometimes--especially on dreary mornings like this--she tends to sleep in. When that happens, I go in to wake her up at around 7:30." Becky explained. "Then she takes a shower--she has a chair in there, so you won't have to clean her, just keep an ear open in case she does slip and fall. Then she likes to watch TV while she eats her breakfast. On nice days she likes to sit on the porch and people watch. She likes to go out for lunch and usually has plans with friends of hers to do so. Afternoons is usually when I--or now you, I guess--would take her shopping or to the post office or any appointments she has. And then that's all you'll have to do because I'll be home by 4:00 at the latest." She smiled at Hoseok, clasping her hands together. "You got all that?"Hoseok nodded. "For sure."Becky's smile brightened a bit. "Good." She then sighed a bit. "Abuela is very stubborn and doesn't like the fact that she has to be dependent on someone to help her around the house and with basic things, so I suggest doing whatever you can to make it seem like she's as independent as possible. For your sake as much as hers."'I can do that." Hoseok assured her."Great." Becky gave him a quick tour of the house, pointing out the kitchen and her grandmother's room, as that would be where Hoseok would spend most of his time. "Do you have any other questions?" Hoseok shook his head. "Okay, you have my number if you do have any. And I might call you during my lunch just to check and make sure Abuela's not giving you too much of a hard time."Hoseok chuckled. "Sounds good."With a small nod and another smile, Becky bustled around the house to grab her work bag, her lunchbox, and an umbrella. "Good luck." She told Hoseok just before leaving for the day.Hoseok took his time familiarizing himself with the house, looking through the kitchen to see what food they had so he could come up with an idea for breakfast and the cleaning supplies as he knew he would probably do basic housekeeping chores during the mornings while Manuela watched TV. Then when 7:30 rolled around, Hoseok quietly padded into the elderly omega's bedroom. "Manuela," He gently roused her. "Time to get up."Manuela grumbled under her breath before opening her eyes, a small glare appearing on her face as she focused on Hoseok. "Who the hell are you?""I'm Hoseok." The alpha answered, used to this from prior jobs. "I'm the caregiver your granddaughter hired."She mumbled something in Spanish before scoffing. "I told her I didn't need a 'caregiver'." She started to sit up to climb out of bed, so Hoseok quickly grabbed the walker from the foot of the bed and rolled it in front of her."Well, if that's the case, then I'll be more than happy to pass the message along to Becky." Hoseok said, hovering behind the omega as she slowly made her way to the bathroom. "But until then, I hope we can get along while I do my job." Manuela huffed and grumbled under her breath again.
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"Are you sure this is okay?" Taehyung asked Jungkook nervously, standing in front of the alpha to show his outfit of a white shirt tucked into black maternity jeans with a denim jacket on top. Normally he never had to question what to wear no matter where he was going, but he'd never been to a church before. And it was his own fault, because he was the one who had assured Jungkook it was okay and insisted on going to the alpha's church's Easter service after overhearing him on the phone with his family talking about how he and Taehyung and the pups would just meet them for lunch. After all, even though Jungkook had explained to him how he hadn't physically been to church all that often since the pandemic started, he knew that Jungkook's spirituality was important to him, and he wanted to be supportive of that. But he had no idea what to wear to church. Were jeans even allowed? Did Jungkook go to a church that allowed omegas to wear pants? Because he knew there were still some with dress codes like that even though they were in the 21st century. Maybe he should have gone and bought new clothes just for that day instead of sticking to his limited post pregnancy wardrobe."Baby," Jungkook's voice breaking through Taehyung's thoughts made the omega realize he was probably actually rambling out loud. "Do you see what I'm wearing?" Jungkook was currently wearing his normal style of oversized clothing except he'd swapped out his typical sweatpants for jeans. "What you're wearing is perfectly fine."Taehyung bit his lip, still not completely sure, as Jungkook turned back to brushing Jiwoo's hair and pulling it into two little buns. "Are you-"That time it was Jiwoo interrupting him. "Mama pretty!" She exclaimed, smiling brightly up at him. That was enough to have Taehyung's heart melting and his anxiety going away."You look very pretty too." Taehyung said, leaning down to press a kiss to her cheek. "Do you like your dress?" Jiwoo nodded happily, playing with the hem of her light blue striped dress.After checking their pup monitor to see if Jihoon had woken up yet, Taehyung sat next to Jungkook and Jiwoo. "So what's today gonna be like?""There will be a worship service that lasts about an hour with singing and Poppa's sermon." Jungkook answered. "Then Bible class, but we don’t have to stay for that unless you want to. That ends by 11:00 and then we'll have lunch with my family."Before Taehyung could ask more questions about what to expect from a church service and what the Bible classes would be like, he noticed Jihoon starting to wake up on the monitor. As he got the two-month-old up, dressed, and fed, Jungkook packed their diaper bag with extra clothes, plenty of diapers, premeasured out formula in bottles for Jihoon, and snacks for Jiwoo. Then they buckled the pups into their car seats and began the just over 45-minute drive to Morrilton.They were a few minutes late by the time they arrived at the church, but there were also a few other stragglers heading inside so Taehyung didn't feel too anxious over the possibility of being judged for walking into the service late. The congregation was singing when they entered and, after Jungkook showed Taehyung where the nursery--or 'cry room' as the elderly members of the church had dubbed it--was, they made their way to, surprisingly, the front few pews to sit with Jungkook's family. They cheerfully greeted them and were quick to provide Taehyung with various books and coloring pads from the stash they apparently had kept stacked at the end of that pew since Jungkook was a pup to help keep young pups entertained during the service until they were old enough to sit through it without getting restless. Jiwoo instantly picked out a coloring book and some crayons, standing in front of the pew between Jungkook and Taehyung with the book resting on the furniture in front of her as she colored. Meanwhile Jihoon rested in Taehyung's arms, clutching at the blanket it he was wrapped in and reaching up to his mother's face as someone made some announcements about upcoming events and sick people.Then, when an elderly alpha was leading a prayer for the congregation--a point where Taehyung felt extremely awkward as he looked around to see everyone bowing their heads with their eyes closed, was he supposed to be praying himself or just listening to the alpha's prayer or what?--the two-month-old began to fuss, rubbing at his eyes. Taehyung tried to hold out until the prayer was over, as he didn't want to disturb anyone or draw unnecessary attention to himself, but the alpha seemed to not be coming to a stop any time soon and Jihoon's fussing was starting to increase in volume, the tired pup squirming in Taehyung's arms. "I'm gonna take him to the nursery." Taehyung whispered to Jungkook, earning a nod from the alpha as he quietly exited the pew and made his way down the side by the classrooms, trying not to disturb anyone on his way. As he passed the last classroom, the infant one based on the label, he noticed a plaque on the wall beside it with Jungkook's grandmother's name on it, something that had him pausing and smiling for just a second before continuing on his path to the nursery.Once he was settled into one of the two rocking chairs in the room, it was thankfully easy to get Jihoon to sleep. He spent the rest of the service in the nursery with Jihoon napping comfortably in his arms and had the room mostly to himself other than a couple of mothers coming in to change their pups' diapers and an alpha carrying a tray of what looked to be crackers into the room, offering one to Taehyung. Figuring this was communion or whatever it was called, Taehyung declined, as he did know enough about church to know that only baptized people took that. Then after Jungkook's grandfather's sermon, another song, and another prayer, he saw through the window that looked into the main part of the church that people were beginning to stir, some pups skipping to the classrooms along the side, signifying that the service must be over. Taehyung opted to wait in the nursery for Jungkook to come get him rather than try to brave the crowd.While waiting, an elderly omega entered the nursery, heading towards the small bathroom in the corner. Then she paused and turned to Taehyung. "You came in with Jungkook, didn't you?"Taehyung nodded and smiled politely. "Yeah, I'm his boyfriend.""Then this must be the little puppy we've been hearing so much about." She said, cooing over Jihoon but making sure not to disturb his nap. "He looks just like Jungkook did when he was an infant." Taehyung continued to smile politely while feeling awkward as he didn't know who exactly this woman was. "Sorry, I'm Aecha, I've known Jungkook's family since I was born.""Nice to meet you, I'm Taehyung.""Well, Taehyung, we hope to see you here at church with us more often now." She said, and all Taehyung did was continue his polite smile as he didn't want to tell her that he wasn't sure how likely that was. "And maybe you can help Jungkook convince Namjoon to start coming back." It was then that Taehyung realized she must have been Namjoon's grandmother.He didn't get a chance to respond as Jungkook entered the nursery at that moment with Jiwoo and greeted the elderly omega. After some quick small talk that Taehyung tuned out as he helped Jiwoo climb into his lap, careful to not wake Jihoon up, Aecha finally excused herself to the bathroom, leaving Jungkook to breathe out a sigh of relief as he turned to Taehyung. "My aunt says that there haven’t been any infants stay for class in years, so Jihoon and Jiwoo wouldn't be missed if you want to go ahead and leave."Taehyung shrugged, thinking back to the plaque on the wall he'd seen. "I noticed the plaque. For your grandmother."Jungkook nodded. "Yeah, she's the one who started the infant class back when my dad was an infant. Before that, pups didn't start going to Bible class until they were two, meaning their parents--usually the mothers--would be stuck having to stay in here. She wanted to make the transition to going to class without their moms easier for pups while also giving the moms a chance to go to the adult Bible class if they wanted.""She sounds very progressive for her time.""Oh, she was." Jungkook confirmed. "She also created the lesson plan for the infants completely by herself, adjusting it every so often to fit with modern trends for pups. Then when I was 14, I took it over while she moved up to the two- and three-year-old class."Taehyung hummed, curious to see Jungkook in action as a teacher. "So you could technically teach their class today if you wanted."Jungkook's eyes widened a bit. "Do you want to stay?""I don't mind."After a moment, Jungkook gestured for Taehyung to follow him through the third and final door in the room that Taehyung now knew led into the infant classroom. Taehyung settled into one of the rocking chairs in the classroom with Jihoon, seeing as he was still sleeping, while Jungkook picked Jiwoo up and placed her into one of the bucket seats inlaid in the table. Taehyung wasn't sure what to expect from the Bible class--possibly some early brainwashing that he knew churches were infamous for--but he definitely hadn't expected for the focus to be on teaching pups all the different aspects of their world, both living and non-living, and how to love and appreciate them through a lesson about how God created the world in seven days. But what Taehyung liked the most about the surprising lesson was how in his element Jungkook seemed to be, the pure enjoyment in Jungkook's eyes as he engaged with Jiwoo in a way that kept her attention captivated and also taught her.Jiwoo was snacking on some vanilla toddler cookies after Jungkook finished the whole lesson when a bell rang. "And that would mean to wrap up and get done so that people can go home and eat lunch at a normal time." Jungkook informed Taehyung, standing up to lift Jiwoo out of her chair. "If we hurry, we can get out of here and up to the annex for lunch with my family before I get pulled into even more 'oh, it's been so long since we've seen you, Jungkook' conversations." Taehyung giggled and stood up from the rocking chair, slightly adjusting his hold on Jihoon before following Jungkook.
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Seokjin was just packing up to leave work for the day when he got a series of texts from an unknown number.
Hi
This is Namjoon
You said I could get your number from Jungkook
Are you free for a cooking lesson tonight?
If not then feel free to ignore me.
Seokjin couldn't help but chuckle a bit as he typed out a response, telling Namjoon he'd be on his way soon. He then texted Taehyung to let him know he would be getting home late, then left his office. He stopped at the store first, picking up some ingredients that he wasn't sure that Namjoon would have on hand based on the recipe he already had in mind.It was nearly 6:00 by the time Seokjin arrived at Namjoon's apartment, and he was speechless for a moment at the state the alpha had answered the door in. Glasses, hair slightly ruffled as if he'd run his hands through it a bit, gray sweatpants--surely Seokjin was too old to be feeling this way, he told himself as he entered the apartment for the first time. "Cozy." He mused, unable to get much more words out just yet as he took in the living space."Thank you." Namjoon said as he closed the door. "So what's on the menu for tonight?""Have you heard of sheet pan dinners?" Seokjin asked, moving over to the kitchen and resting his shopping bags on the counter. Namjoon shook his head as he followed the omega. "They're meals that everything goes on one baking sheet in the oven, so they're pretty good for people who don't have the time or energy to watch over a bunch of things at once." Namjoon nodded slightly. "So today we will be making hoisin sriracha Chicken with sweet potato, cauliflower, and red peppers."Sounds good…" Namjoon trailed off as Seokjin proceeded to pull out all the ingredients he'd purchased. "This doesn't seem very simple.""Half of these are mixed together to make the sauce." Seokjin assured him. "Then the rest just gets tossed onto the baking sheet." Namjoon nodded but still didn't seem too sure. "You ready for me to walk you through this?"Namjoon blinked. "I guess…"Despite his hesitance, Namjoon did okay, only needing to be reminded to use oven mitts when pulling the baking sheet out of the oven when it was time to turn the chicken and potatoes over and add the cauliflower and red peppers. He even did a good job at cutting the red pepper, watching Seokjin closely with his half of the pepper to copy his movements exactly. A little over an hour after they started, the pair were finally settling on the couch with their plates to dig into Namjoon's first meal. "This is really good." Namjoon said in slight surprise after taking a bite of chicken thigh."I knew you had it in you." Seokjin smiled at him, feeling endeared with the way the alpha subconsciously puffed his chest with pride. "And after some more practice, and when you feel comfortable to have two things going at once, you can boil some rice to go with it. And if you want to switch things up you can use broccoli instead of cauliflower. And you can even meal prep with this by pulling the meat off the bones of the leftovers and make sandwiches.""I'll keep all of that in mind." Namjoon said as he popped a piece of cauliflower in his mouth only to seemingly gag on it, although it was obvious he was trying to hide the reaction."You okay?” Seokjin asked in concern.Namjoon nodded, forcing himself to swallow the vegetable. "Yeah, just got a weird texture there." Seokjin frowned until Namjoon elaborated. "I'm a sensory eater, meaning I'm extremely sensitive to certain or weird textures in foods. That's another reason why I've been wanting to try cooking, research shows that it's easier to tolerate foods when you're in charge of preparing them."Seokjin nodded in understanding before looking back down at his plate. "Are there any foods that are a complete no go for you? So I can avoid them in future lessons?" Namjoon didn't answer for a while and when Seokjin looked up to see if something was wrong, he found the alpha staring at him in a mixture of awe and confusion. "What?""Nothing." Namjoon shook his head. "Just…you're the first allistic person to ask me that.""Allistic?" Seokjin repeated."Not autistic." Namjoon explained.Seokjin hummed at that. "Then you've been around a lot of shitty people." He said, popping a piece of sweet potato into his mouth."Don't I know it." Namjoon said so quietly that Seokjin wasn't sure if he was supposed to hear it before taking another bite of the chicken.***Woojin babbled happily as Jimin situated the sling wrap around him so he could easily carry the five-month-old around the store during his weekly grocery trip. "Yeah, are you ready to go shopping?" Jimin cooed to him, tilting his head down to press a kiss to the top of his head once he was situated. "Let's go!"Jimin kept one hand on Woojin through the sling as he pushed the cart around the grocery store, filling it up with all the things on his list on his phone that was propped up on his purse in the front of the cart where Woojin would soon be big enough to sit--a thought that nearly had tears rushing to Jimin's eyes. Woojin was content to babble and pat at Jimin's chest and shirt as he walked around, Jimin making sure to smile down at him and give him a soft kiss to the head periodically. Then as they reached the dairy aisle, Woojin began to fuss and mouth at Jimin's skin just above the neckline of his tank top, so Jimin shifted Woojin and the sling just enough to be able to pull the top of his shirt down to expose his breast and help the five-month-old latch on. Once Woojin was happily nursing, Jimin resumed his shopping."Jimin?" He heard a somewhat familiar voice call out to him just as he was grabbing a carton of eggs. He turned to see one of the cheerleaders from his graduating class--Samantha, if he remembered her name correctly--waving excitedly at him. "Oh my god, you, like, dropped off the face of the earth after graduation!""Yeah…" Because I unfriended half our graduating class, Jimin kept that thought to himself. "How have you been, Samantha?""I'm good! Been keeping busy." She chuckled then proceeded to elaborate even though Jimin hadn't asked, leading him to believe that she was gloating. "I'm a chemistry teacher at the high school now, although I took today off because everyone needs a mental health day, right? At least that's what my husband who's a psychologist says. Michael Smith, remember him? I'm sure you do." While Jimin no longer felt triggered by hearing the alpha's name, he did feel a surge of annoyance wash over him by the obvious dig. "We have a beautiful little boy together. Liam, he'll be five in September. He's at preschool right now." She then looked Jimin over. "I'm sure your older pups are in school too."Jimin raised an eyebrow at her. "Excuse me?"Samantha shrugged a bit. "I mean, it wasn't that big of a secret that you were pregnant when we graduated.""Except I wasn't." Jimin said. "Woojin's my first pup." He glanced down and smiled at his pup who was currently starting to doze off while nursing. He then looked back up at Samantha. "Maybe you shouldn't listen to every rumor you hear.""In my defense it was a pretty believable one." Jimin glared at her, but she didn't seem to care. "Anyway, a bunch of us are having a cookout at Laurel Park on May 25, kind of a 10-year reunion. You should totally come." Jimin opened his mouth to decline, because why would he want to spend any more time with their bitch asses than necessary, but she was already talking over him. "And don't worry if you can't get a sitter, it'll be pup friendly. I understand how hard it can be to be a single mom."Apparently, Samantha had a death wish, but Jimin wasn't going to subject his pup's innocent eyes to that. "I'm not a single mom."Samantha tilted her head. "You're not wearing a wedding ring."Jimin gritted his teeth. "You don't have to be married to be in a relationship. I assure you, Woojin's father and I are together and very happy.”"Then bring him along too." She didn't give Jimin a chance to actually respond to the invitation as she checked her Fitbit. "I gotta go pick up Liam from school, his class gets out at noon. Just message me on FaceBook to let me know if you're coming or not." She was gone long before Jimin could formulate a response.
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"It was horrible!" Jimin paced around the kitchen, earning a hum from Yoongi as the alpha stirred onion, carrots, garlic, curry paste, coriander, cumin, and red pepper flakes at the bottom of a pot with one hand, the other hand supporting Woojin who was propped on his hip. "First of all, she genuinely thought I was pregnant with some random alpha's pup when we graduated and didn't seem to find issue with still believing a 10-year-old rumor! Then she had the audacity to assume I was a single mother and didn't even have the decency to feign embarrassment when I informed her that she was wrong!""She sounds like a bitch.""Oh, she is one." Jimin confirmed, pausing in his pacing when he noticed that Woojin was twisting his body to follow Jimin with his eyes. "She always has been. I'm pretty sure she was the one to tell people that I had a minimum of five abortions during junior year." Jimin took Woojin from Yoongi, pressing a few kisses to the five-month old's cheek until he was giggling.Yoongi raised an eyebrow at Jimin. "Why were people so obsessed with the idea of you being pregnant in high school?" He asked before grabbing vegetable broth and coconut milk to add to the pot.Jimin rolled his eyes a bit. "It's what happens when you're the resident slut of the school with the highest teen pregnancy rate in the state.""Don’t call yourself a slut." Yoongi said."What if I'm calling myself your slut?" Jimin asked, batting his eyes at Yoongi.Yoongi shot him a look and pointed to Woojin. "Our pup is right there."Jimin snorted as Yoongi turned down the heat on the stove to let their dinner simmer. "He's five months old, he doesn't even know what a slut is.""And I'd like to keep it that way." Yoongi said, cupping Jimin's cheeks and pulling him into a soft kiss. "Ignore them. They don't matter.""I know." Jimin sighed. "It's just frustrating that they get to walk around with this image of me in their head and probably still talk to each other about it when in reality I have an amazing life that they'd probably be jealous of. I mean, I have a very healthy relationship with the love of my life, we have the cutest pup in the world, we're homeowners--that itself is a flex in this economy."Yoongi chuckled before pressing his lips to Jimin's again. "We know the truth and that's what matters." Jimin hummed as Yoongi kissed him again, but his slight pout showed that he still wasn't fully satisfied. "You wanna go to the reunion cookout just to rub it in their faces, don't you?""Yes.""Alright, we'll go." Yoongi laughed, earning a bright smile from Jimin as he kissed him once more. "Now I'm gonna go change out of my work clothes while the soup simmers, and then I'm stealing you…" He tickled Woojin, earning a bright smile and laugh from him, "for some snuggles." He pressed a kiss to Woojin's forehead before padding out of the kitchen.***Hoseok was wiping down the kitchen counters when he heard the front door open followed by Becky entering the kitchen a few minutes later. "I see Abuela decided to take a little nap.""She tired herself out visiting every single one of her friends today." Hoseok mused.Becky giggled as she set her workbag and lunch box on the table. "I'm impressed." Hoseok hummed at that, tossing his used rag through the open door to the laundry room. "You've lasted a whole month and she hasn't run you off yet."Hoseok shrugged. "I'm just as stubborn, so it's not that easy to get rid of me.""Looks like she's found her match." Becky smiled before turning to the nearest cabinet to rummage through it."I actually had a question." Hoseok said, earning an expectant look from Becky as she turned away from the cabinet with a bag of potato chips in hand. "I know you're a teacher so I was just wondering what my schedule would look like for summer break."Becky nodded slightly. "I work at Walmart over the summer for some extra income. Gotta pay all the bills somehow." Even though she had a humorous tone, Hoseok couldn't help but feel a bit sad that she had to do that in order to survive. "So you'll still be working full time unless my grandmother manages to overpower you.""She can try." Hoseok let out a small laugh before heading to leave. "Have a good weekend, I'll see you on Monday.""You too!"***Taehyung smiled at the sight of Jiwoo and Jihoon sleeping comfortably on Jungkook's bed in the alpha's apartment before quietly closing the door and tiptoeing back to the couch. "I don't think we have to worry too much about the adjustment." He said, as that was what they were testing that day--how well their pups would handle transitioning between homes when Jungkook did move back into his apartment for the most part."Yeah…" Jungkook said, the tiniest hint of a frown on his face."What's wrong?" Taehyung asked, furrowing his eyebrows.Jungkook quickly shook his head. "Nothing's wrong." Taehyung frowned, scooting closer to Jungkook and taking his hand in his, intertwining their fingers. "I'm just not looking forward to not waking up to you every day anymore."Taehyung squeezed his hand and gave him a soft smile. "It won't be forever. Just until we're ready to move in together for real."The alpha hummed, rubbing his thumb across the back of Taehyung's hand. "What if I'm ready now?""What?" Taehyung asked, eyes widening as he processed the question.Jungkook took a deep breath. "What if I'm…ready for us to live together for real? Because like I said, I really don't want to go back to waking up without you.""Really?""I mean, obviously you would have to agree first-""Yes." Taehyung said with no hesitation, stunning Jungkook for a second."Y-yes?" Taehyung nodded, sweetly kissing Jungkook on the cheek as that adorable deer in headlights look appeared on his face. "Oh, good." Taehyung giggled and squeezed Jungkook's hand again. "W-we'll still need to talk to Namjoon first. Give him a chance to find a roommate or a smaller apartment with cheaper rent." He turned to Taehyung, his signature bunny smile forming. "We're really gonna move in together."Taehyung giggled again. "We are." He leaned in to press his lips to Jungkook's in a soft kiss.The kiss grew heated fairly quickly, Taehyung parting his lips to flick his tongue against Jungkook's. An instinctual growl rumbled low in Jungkook's chest, sending tingles of pleasure through Taehyung's stomach as he pressed closer to him. Jungkook moved his hands over Taehyung's hips, one slipping just under the hem of the omega's sweater to touch his bare skin.Then they heard keys in the door, causing them to quickly pull apart just in time for a frustrated looking Namjoon to enter the apartment. "Hey, you're home really early." Jungkook said, trying to act like he and Taehyung hadn't totally just been making out."Yeah, I got fired." Namjoon said as he slipped his shoes off and padded towards the kitchen to get a bag of Takis from the pantry."I'm sorry, what now?" Jungkook asked as both he and Taehyung sat up straighter, looking at Namjoon in shock."Something about how I was no longer a good fit." Namjoon shrugged."Did they give you a reason why?" Taehyung inquired, earning a head shake from Namjoon. "That's bullshit! Can they do that?"Namjoon shrugged again. "Arkansas is an at will employment state. Meaning no employer is required to give a reason before firing you."Jungkook ran a hand over his face out of frustration for his friend. "Which is one of the reasons it's so hard for neurodivergent people to keep and hold jobs because businesses can fire someone for their disability without having the paper trail to prove that's why."Taehyung's eyes widened a bit as he looked between the two alphas, seeing that both were frustrated yet not surprised at the outcome. Was this really what they had to deal with on a regular basis? Taehyung knew it was probably a dumb question as he was more than aware of the ableism that was rampant in society, but to actually witness it firsthand was a huge shock to him. "We'll help you figure it out," was all he could say to Namjoon in the moment.
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"Do you really have to work today?" Jimin whined. The day before Yoongi had come home with the news that one of his coworkers needed to take off suddenly due to a death in the family and that he had been asked to cover their early Saturday morning shift. So now Jimin was spending his 3:00 am nursing session with Woojin pouting at Yoongi as the alpha moved around their room to get ready for work. "You're supposed to have the weekends off.""I know but they're paying me overtime and offered me extra PTO to take an extra day off at some point during this year." Yoongi reminded Jimin, and while Jimin understood that it was a good trade, he still couldn't help but pout. "You'll barely even notice I'm gone."Jimin's pout deepened as Woojin unlatched from him, the omega propping the six-month-old up to burp him. "What about the cookout today?" He asked just before Woojin burped loudly. Jimin giggled for just a second before pouting again, helping Woojin latch onto his other breast to finish the feeding and help him get back to sleep faster."I'll be there for it." Yoongi promised him. "The shift ends at noon; I'll be at the park by 1:00 at the latest depending on traffic." Jimin continued to pout as Yoongi rounded the bed and leaned down to kiss him. "It'll be okay. I'll make it." Jimin nodded sadly, puckering his lips for another kiss. "I'll see you for lunch.""You better." Jimin grumbled, silently requesting one more kiss before allowing Yoongi to leave.Once Woojin was done nursing, Jimin very carefully laid him back in his bedside bassinet, popping his pacifier into his mouth before turning the lamp back off. Then he watched as Woojin went back to sleep, and only then did he attempt to sleep some more himself. Unfortunately, after so many years of going to sleep with Yoongi's arms wrapped around him, Jimin only managed to get a few minutes of dozing in before Woojin was up for the day.He got Woojin up, gave him his morning cuddles and kisses, nursed him, and changed his diaper. Then he took him to the kitchen where he strapped him into his highchair at the counter so he could feed him what he had quickly learned was the six-month old's favorite food--peach oat yogurt. When the yogurt cup was empty, but Woojin was still opening his mouth in anticipation for food, Jimin cut up a banana and spread the slices across Woojin's tray to keep him happy and occupied while he heated up some leftover muffins from breakfast the day before to eat for himself. Normally this was the point when Yoongi would take over so Jimin could take absolutely as long as he wanted with showering, skincare, and occasionally makeup if he was feeling spicy, but he didn't have the luxury that day. Instead, he cleaned Woojin's hands and face, leaving his highchair tray on the counter to be cleaned later, and took him back to his room to get dressed. Once he was dressed, they went back to the family room where Jimin tried to get Woojin to play with some of his toys, but the pup was very obviously more interested in being attached to his mother, so Jimin settled for a few books to read to Woojin as they cuddled. When Woojin began to yawn and rub his eyes, Jimin carried him back to the bedroom and gently rocked him until he was fully asleep.While Woojin was napping, Jimin hopped in the shower, taking a quick one like he typically did throughout the week when Yoongi was at work. Then he did his morning skincare routine, applied light makeup--just enough to cover up how sleep deprived he actually was that day--and got dressed in light green sweatshirt and a pair of denim shorts. After checking on Woojin to make sure he was still breathing sleeping happily, Jimin went to the kitchen to clean off Woojin's highchair tray. Just as he was sitting on the couch to relax and watch some TV, he heard Woojin babbling to himself, his way of letting Jimin know he was ready to get up as opposed to just transitioning between sleep cycles.After nursing him and feeding him some heated up roasted sweet potato wedges from the previous night's dinner, Jimin took Woojin on a quick walk around their neighborhood, making a point to say hello to the dogs running around in the yards or relaxing on the porches they passed. Once they returned to their house, Jimin set Woojin on the floor with some of his blocks to keep him occupied while he checked that the diaper bag was stocked up on all the necessities and threw in some snacks for Woojin just in case. Then, around 12:30, he took Woojin out to his car and buckled him into the carseat. "You ready to get this over with?" Jimin asked, earning a laugh in response from Woojin. "Yeah, the sooner we go, and the sooner Daddy gets there, the sooner we can come back home and have some well-earned family time." He pressed a kiss to Woojin's nose before closing the door and heading to the driver's seat.When he arrived at the area of the park where the cookout was set up, it was already crowded with a lot of familiar faces, which Jimin had expected since he'd waited until nearly two hours after the start time to show up as he wanted to limit the amount of time he'd have to deal with everyone without Yoongi by his side. And yet he still wasn't completely prepared for the way a group of former cheerleaders and dancers immediately stopped talking as the spotted him and stared for a moment before taking on their fake friendly personas once more. "Oh my god, Jimin, you came!" Samantha exclaimed, attempting to pull him in for an awkward hug but thankfully Jimin could avoid it by adjusting his hold on Woojin."I did." Jimin said with a forced smile.Samantha tilted her head slightly. "You didn't bring your…boyfriend, was it?""He had to cover a shift last minute." Jimin answered honestly. "He should be here soon though." He tried to move away from the group of former classmates under the guise of getting food or maybe taking Woojin to swing in one of the infant swings at the playground, but the other omegas didn't seem all that eager to let him go."We were all just catching up and talking about what we've been doing since high school!" A female omega he vaguely remembered as Taylor exclaimed. "But we understand if that's not something you want to talk about."Jimin took that as a challenge. "Oh, I would love to talk about what I've been doing!" He exclaimed. "I went to UCA and got my bachelor's in sociology. I started dating my alpha during freshman year, and I moved to Little Rock to live with him during my junior year. After graduating, I started working at the Pulaski County Juvenile Detention Center as an intake officer and was there for five years before deciding it wasn't working with my pregnancy. We bought a house here in Conway last summer and then welcomed this little one in November." He bounced Woojin slightly in his arms, earning a laugh from the six-month-old."Oh, so you're not working now?" A male omega named Nicholas asked."No, I was late enough in my pregnancy when I stopped that I decided it wouldn't really be beneficial to start a new job right then." Jimin answered, opting not to tell them that he was technically working as a TikTok creator. After all, he didn't want them looking him up. "And my alpha makes enough that I can stay home and be with Woojin for these early years." Jimin smiled as Woojin nuzzled against his chest. "But I'm not opposed to going back to work eventually. I'm just enjoying my time now.""How…traditional of you."Jimin tilted his head. "I actually think it's very omegist of me to make that choice for myself, but to each their own."A couple of the other omega's spouses walked up including a very familiar alpha that had a death glare forming on Jimin's face involuntarily. "Well if it isn't Jimin Park.""Hi, Michael." Jimin greeted with a flat tone, switching Woojin to his other hip."See, you do remember him!" Samantha exclaimed with a glint in her eyes."Barely." Jimin deadpanned. "It's not like he was all that memorable or anything."The way Michael's smile fell showed that he caught the implication in Jimin's words. "So what have you been up to?"Jimin opened his mouth to answer but Samantha did it for him. "He's a homemaker while his alpha works.""Oh, so you're married now?" Michael asked, seeming genuinely surprised by the idea.Again, Samantha jumped in before Jimin could respond. "Oh no, they're just dating with a pup. You know," she lowered her voice to a stage whisper, obviously not caring if Jimin heard her or not, "the whole why buy the cow when you get the milk for free thing?""Michael still married you, didn't he?" Jimin retorted without hesitation, tilting his head innocently. "Last I remember, you got around just as much as I did during senior year. Oh wait, that didn't count because you only did oral, right?"As Samantha glared at him, he felt a familiar presence approaching and quickly turned to see Yoongi hurrying up, still wearing his work scrubs. "I made it.""Baby, hi!" Jimin was quick to loop his arm around Yoongi's neck and pull him into a greeting kiss--and if he showed off a bit, he'd never admit to it. "How was work?""It was good. And your day?" Yoongi glanced at Jimin's former classmates, who were all staring at him as if they couldn't believe he actually existed, and gave them an awkward yet polite smile."Just catching up with some old classmates." Jimin said before quickly introducing them, noticing how Yoongi tensed and clenched his jaw just the slightest bit at Michael's name."Nice to meet you, Yoongi." Samantha said through somewhat clenched teeth. "Jimin told us you'd be coming late because of work. Are you a doctor or something?" She gestured to his scrubs."Oh, no, I'm a Mental Health Associate at BridgeWay.""Oh, so you work with crazy people?" Taylor asked.Yoongi blinked at her. "I work with people who are struggling with all sorts of disorders." He clarified as Woojin reached out to him.Jimin clapped his hands together once Woojin was in Yoongi's arms instead. "Well, this has been…not very fun at all. Yoongi and I are gonna go get some food and eat before Woojin decides he's ready for his afternoon nap. This has been quite horrible, and we should totally never do this again." He flashed them a fake smile before taking Yoongi's hand and tugging him off towards where the hot dogs and hamburgers were set out for people to make plates. "You said 1:00! It's nearly 1:30!" Jimin whined when they were out of ear shot."I know but the director called me in for a meeting right before the end of my shift." Yoongi said with an apologetic tone. "I'll tell you all about it when we get home." Jimin raised an eyebrow at him but chose not to question him since he knew he would be getting answers soon enough.
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"Okay, what did your boss talk to you about?" Jimin asked as he padded into the family room after putting Woojin down for his afternoon nap with his breast pump in tow, seeing as Woojin had been too exhausted to nurse before falling asleep and Jimin wasn't in the mood to risk leaking from his overachiever boobs. But when he saw a mug of tea waiting for him along with Yoongi on the couch, he decided that pumping could wait for just a little bit since his boobs honestly didn't even feel all that full just yet.Yoongi waited until Jimin was curled up next to him on the couch with his tea in hand before speaking. "So as you know we tend to get a lot of new admissions during the summer months, especially with teenagers whose parents didn't want their treatment to affect their schooling." Jimin nodded, sipping at his warm beverage. "And in preparation for that, along with our new budget for the year, the board decided to hire on a bunch of new staff so that we're not spread out so thin.""That's nice of them." Jimin mused, and Yoongi nodded in agreement."But they also don't want to overwhelm the patients with so many staff so they're changing up all our hours." Yoongi explained. "So instead of working 7:30 to 4:30 Monday through Friday, I'm now going to be working 6:30 to 3:00 Tuesday through Friday."Jimin started to nod before his brain caught up and did the math. "Wait, so they're cutting your hours?""Only by a little bit. Going from 40 to 34 a week." Yoongi said. "But the reason my boss called me into a meeting was because I've been working there for 13 years now, and he didn't want the changes to affect me negatively, so he's giving me a raise.""You got a raise?" Jimin exclaimed, setting his tea to the side so he wouldn't spill it in his excitement.Yoongi nodded, laughing when Jimin cheered and climbed into his lap to give him a celebratory hug. "He wanted to give me a promotion, but the only position higher than mine that doesn't require a master's degree or some kind of special licensing or certification isn't open right now.""I'm so proud of you!" Jimin squealed, pressing his lips to Yoongi's. "And you'll totally get that promotion when whatever that position is opens up.""Activities director." Yoongi elaborated. "But yes, my boss did promise that." Jimin smiled brightly, pulling him into another kiss. “So now I get to be home earlier in the afternoons and get to spend Mondays with you and Woojin.”Jimin let out another little cheer, wiggling excitedly on Yoongi’s lap. “You get to participate in grocery day now!”Yoongi raised an eyebrow. “Grocery day?”“Mondays are grocery day.” Jimin said as if it were obvious. “Tuesdays are floor day. Wednesdays are bathroom day. Thursdays are sheets day. Fridays are tidying day. Saturdays are family day. And Sundays are planning day.”“Have I ever told you how amazing you are?” Yoongi asked, smiling softly as he wrapped his arms around Jimin’s waist and tugged him further up his lap. “Such a good omega taking care of our home.”Jimin couldn’t help but giggle a bit as Yoongi trailed a few kisses across his cheek and jaw. “Keep talking to me like that and I might just drop all of my omegist values.”“We can’t have that.” Yoongi murmured, moving down to Jimin’s neck. “I don’t know what I’d do with myself if you weren’t in charge anymore.”“At least we both know who the real boss is.” Jimin mumbled as Yoongi’s teeth scraped against his scent gland. Yoongi sucked lightly on his chosen spot, a tiny moan coming out of Jimin at both the feeling and the thought of the mark that he knew would be left behind. He tilted his head to give Yoongi more room for his art work, subconsciously shifting his hips on top of the alpha as he felt a trickle of slick coming out of him. “I have an amazing idea.” Jimin whispered, earning a hum from Yoongi in response. “We should have sexy time.” He shifted his hips again, smiling at the way Yoongi’s breath hitched from the friction between them.“Are you sure?” Yoongi asked, running his hands over Jimin’s back. “You don’t think it’ll hurt with your tear?”Jimin shook his head slightly. “It’s been six and a half months, I feel completely normal down there now.” He cupped Yoongi’s face and tilted his head so he could press their lips together in a soft, loving kiss.Yoongi slipped his hands under Jimin’s sweatshirt, sending tingles every where his hands touched his bare skin. “I don’t want to hurt you.” Yoongi mumbled, and if Jimin weren’t already so horny, he’d probably find it endearing.“We’ll use extra lube and go slow.” Jimin said, kissing Yoongi more passionately. He flicked his tongue into the alpha’s mouth, grinding on his lap.“Woojin’s still sleeping in our room.” Yoongi pointed out.“If only there were some other piece of furniture in this house.” Jimin retorted. “Like a very comfy, gorgeous couch that I spent days searching for to make sure we had the perfect one.”Yoongi was quiet for just a second. “You have a point.”Jimin giggled as Yoongi pulled him into another searing kiss, the last tendril of hesitation leaving the alpha. After a moment, Jimin pulled away. “I’ll be right back.” He whispered as he climbed off Yoongi’s lap, hurrying off to their bedroom. He quietly stepped inside, taking extra care to not make any kind of sound or movement that would wake up Woojin as he retrieved their lube from the bedside table.When he returned to the family room, Yoongi was already naked, lazily stroking his cock as he waited for Jimin. The sight alone was enough to send a gush of slick out of him, so Jimin practically threw the lube at Yoongi so the alpha could get his dick ready while Jimin stripped out of his clothes. Once his clothes were in a pile on the floor, and Yoongi’s dick was so coated in lube that Jimin honestly felt it would be difficult to get a good enough grip on it to hold it still for him to penetrate himself, Jimin climbed back onto Yoongi’s lap, the alpha’s eyes trained on one specific part of him. “Oh my god, you are just like your son!” Jimin laughed at how unashamedly and openly Yoongi was staring at his boobs.“They’re nice to look at.” Yoongi defended himself as Jimin positioned the tip of Yoongi’s dick against him. “And don’t talk about our son when we’re having sex.”“Noted.” Jimin replied before carefully and slowly sinking down on Yoongi.A tiny sigh escaped him once Yoongi was fully inside him, and he took a moment to just enjoy the feeling of having his alpha filling him up once more after so long before moving. He started with just grinding his hips, getting used to the slight stretch that was definitely made easier with the copious amounts of lube mixed with his slick, before lifting up and dropping back down as he properly rode Yoongi. Yoongi’s skin was flushed a gorgeous pink, mouth open slightly as he watched Jimin on top of him, his gaze of course focusing mostly on the way his breasts were bouncing from his effort. The sight mixed with the feeling of Yoongi’s dick rubbing against his walls made it extremely difficult for Jimin to hold back his own moans, but he kept his bottom lip trapped between his teeth to keep any sounds from escaping him as he didn’t want Woojin waking up and interrupting such a beautiful and long awaited moment.But it wasn’t Woojin that brought their lovemaking to an early end. Rather it was a familiar tingling sensation in his breasts. Jimin realized just a bit too late what was happening and, before he could even attempt to stop it, streams of milk started to shoot out of his breasts, one hitting Yoongi in the face before Jimin was able to block them by putting his hands over his nipples. “I thought your boobs were done attacking me!” Yoongi feigned a pout as Jimin climbed off of him, still covering his boobs as his milk didn’t seem to be stopping anytime soon.Jimin laughed brightly, thinking back to how many times he’d accidentally squirted Yoongi in the face during the early weeks at home with Woojin. From when his boobs would randomly shoot out milk as they got too full before he’d established a pumping routine along with nursing Woojin, to the few times Woojin had managed to squeeze his other breast while feeding and trigger Jimin’s letdown that way, and even the first time they’d attempted to get a bit frisky after Jimin was cleared for sex and Yoongi had decided playing with Jimin’s boobs would be fun—although that one was for sure Yoongi’s fault. “I didn’t know that would happen!” Jimin managed to get out through his laughter as he fell onto the opposite side of the couch. Realizing his milk truly wasn’t stopping, and laughing too hard to truly do anything about it, Jimin nodded towards where his pump was still sitting on the coffee table. “Can you…”Yoongi seemed to know what he was asking and grabbed the containers that Jimin’s milk was pumped into. He held them out to Jimin, who quickly took them and held them over his nipples to catch the milk that was still coming out of him, which sent Jimin into another laughing fit. “Well this will certainly be a story for the wedding.”“Wedding?” Yoongi asked in confusion.Jimin seemed to realize what he’d said and quickly shook his head. “It’s just an expression.” He told Yoongi. “I just mean any big get together where people would share funny stories like this.” Yoongi studied Jimin with a slight frown, feeling like the omega wasn’t being 100% honest, but Jimin had already moved on, pulling the containers away from his boobs that had finally realized there was nothing actually requesting milk from them. “Might as well pump now.” Jimin giggled, moving to grab the rest of his pump parts.Yoongi wanted to push Jimin slightly, feeling like they might need to revisit the topic of marriage, see if they truly had compromised or if Jimin had been the one to give up on something he valued for the alpha’s sake, but as his tongue darted out to wet his lip in a nervous habit, a sweet taste on his tongue distracted him. “Your milk tastes sweeter now.”“Stop tasting my milk!” Jimin exclaimed, playfully kicking at the alpha after he’d started the pump. “It’s not for you!”“Then why do your boobs keep giving it to me?” Yoongi retorted, earning a small glare from Jimin.
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"So you're moving?" Danni, a former coworker from when he was still a daycare teacher who he had formed a minor friendship with due to them being the only two alphas employed at the daycare, asked as they waited for the bartender to bring them their drinks.Hoseok nodded, as he would be moving to Conway the following weekend. He'd found an apartment within his budget that unfortunately wouldn't be available to move in until August, but Jimin and Yoongi had offered to let him live with them for the summer after his current lease was up. "Yep, so I'm not sure when I'd be able to make it down here for another night out unless you're offering up your couch for me to crash on."They got their drinks and turned around to find a place to sit with them before eventually migrating to the dance floor. However, Hoseok stopped as he spotted a familiar face. "Oh, hey, Hoseok!" Becky greeted him cheerfully."Hey!" Hoseok greeted her back. "Fancy seeing you here.""My brother's in town for the weekend." Becky explained. "So I took the opportunity to come out with my friends for the first time in I don't even know how long." She gestured to the small group of omegas she was with before introducing him as her grandmother's caregiver.Hoseok and Danni ended up sitting with Becky and her friends as the conversation flowed seamlessly, especially between Danni and Becky's friend, Rosalie. The drinks kept coming to the point that most of the night was a haze as Hoseok moved through it--talking, laughing, eventually dancing with Becky. And when he woke up the next morning with a killer headache, there were flashes of him and Becky in a dark corner of the club, bodies pressed together as their lips met repeatedly in a series of searing, passionate kisses. "Fuck." Hoseok groaned, both from his hangover and the realization that he'd essentially made out with a client.He spent the rest of that holiday weekend panicking over how he would approach the inevitable conversation between him and Becky. But he was surprised when he arrived at Becky's house on Tuesday and found her to be seemingly unaware of the moment they had shared. Almost as if she didn't even remember it. Or maybe she was trying to ignore it and act normally for the sake of professionalism. Either way, Hoseok was grateful that things didn't seem to be awkward as the 27-year-old omega maintained her normal morning routine of informing Hoseok of any important information or updates regarding Manuela while she finished getting ready for work.He should've have known better than to assume everything would remain normal though, because a couple of weeks after the incident, when Becky returned home soaked from the onslaught of rain that had just started coming down in the past hour, Manuela was suddenly breaking her, 'I hate my caregiver' persona. "We can't send him home when the weather's like this." She had insisted as Becky stripped out of her wet Walmart vest and hung it up to dry for the next day."Abuela, I'm sure he's ready to go home for the day-""Nonsense!"The conversation had switched to Spanish after that point, causing Hoseok to look awkwardly between the arguing omegas as his high school courses weren't enough to help him follow along in that moment. Eventually, Becky sighed and turned to Hoseok. "Would you like to stay for dinner and wait until the rain lets up a bit?"Hoseok shifted his gaze to Manuela for a brief second. "Do I even really have a choice?""No." Manuela said before turning back to her book.Becky changed out of her wet clothes into an oversized t shirt and shorts before getting started on dinner, and Hoseok found it extremely hard to not let his gaze fall to her exposed legs. Despite his internal scolding to be respectful because she wasn't there just for him to ogle, and his attempts to keep himself busy by offering to help Becky cook, his eyes just kept going to the extremely smooth, tan, soft looking skin. It was a wonder he managed to get through cooking and eating without imploding from his efforts to remain respectful and polite.Then Becky came back from helping her grandmother get into bed and sidled up next to Hoseok as he did the dishes--a thank you to Becky and Manuela for the meal. "You know she really likes you, right?" Becky giggled as she began drying the dishes."She really doesn't like to show it." Hoseok chuckled."No, she does not." Becky agreed. "But every day she tells me all the things you do with and for her, so even if she doesn't explicitly say that she likes you, I know she does.""Well, that makes me feel good.""It should." Becky hummed. "Because she hasn't liked a single other caregiver." She smiled up at Hoseok. "So thank you."Hoseok shrugged. "Just doing my job."They finished up the dishes and, Hoseok wasn't sure how but rather than bidding her goodnight and leaving with a promise to see her the next morning, Hoseok found himself kissing her once again, Becky's arms looping around his neck as she pressed against him, even rising up onto her toes due to their height difference. Before he knew it, before he had the chance to regain control of himself, he was in Becky's room…in her bed…clothes falling to the floor and condom coming out of the wrapper. He felt her nails digging into his back as he pushed into her, hips moving in quick yet deep thrusts as he buried her face in his neck to muffle her moans.When it was over, the panic instantly set in, and not only for Hoseok. "Shit!" Becky cursed, hiding her face behind her hands as the two laid awkwardly next to each other in the bed."My sentiment's exactly." Hoseok sighed. "I work for you-""I know!" Becky groaned. "And my grandmother loves you! She's so particular that I don't think I'll ever find another caregiver that she'll approve of."Hoseok ran a hand through his hair, glancing over at Becky who was still covering his face. "So…do we try to go back to normal again?"Becky sighed, finally lowering her hands. "I honestly don't think that's possible. As you've learned, I don't have the best track record when it comes to hiding attraction towards people.""Yeah, I see that." Hoseok somehow managed to chuckle, Becky quickly joining in with her own laughter at the absurdity of the situation.When their laughing fit was finished, Becky sighed again. "I understand if you want to ask your boss move you somewhere else." She said.Hoseok was quiet for a moment before responding. "I actually like it here. Manuela's fun. And as you've said, she loves me."Becky let out another small giggle. "What about…this whole thing?" She gestured between the two of them."I guess…we'll just have to see." Hoseok said. "Now that it's out of our system I mean.""…okay." Becky gave Hoseok a tiny smile before moving to climb out of the bed, keeping the sheet wrapped around her. "I'm gonna take a shower and…I guess I'll see you tomorrow?" Hoseok nodded and waited until she'd disappeared into the bathroom before getting up and dressed to go home.
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It wasn't out of their system, Hoseok noticed very quickly. They hadn't had sex again, but the tension between them was very obvious. So obvious that a part of Hoseok was surprised Manuela hadn't commented on it. Maybe her senses were diminished enough in her old age for her to not pick up on the arousal between Hoseok and Becky. At least, that's what Hoseok was telling himself.But due to the fact that the mutual attraction wasn't going away, but was in fact increasing, Hoseok took it upon himself to read through every line of his employee handbook to see what was and wasn't considered misconduct. And once he was confident in his findings, he brought them up to Becky when she got home from work. "So there's no actual policy against me dating the relatives of someone in my care." He tried to remain as casual as possible as he finished folding the laundry for that day.Becky's eyes glinted, but she tried to suppress her excitement. "Really?Hoseok hummed. "And as far as I'm concerned…it's none of the company's business who I date.""So…" Becky moved to sit next to him on the couch. "We're dating now?""That's up to you." Hoseok said with a smile before looking away shyly.***Hoseok was rudely awakened by Yoongi's shower. More specifically the sounds that were accompanying the running water that morning. With a groan, he buried his head under his pillow to try to drown them out, but it didn't work. By the time the noises finally stopped, Hoseok had given up on sleep, so he decided to get ready for the day himself.After a quick shower of his own and getting dressed, he padded out to the kitchen where Yoongi was pouring himself some coffee to go and Jimin was adding fruit to his one cup smoothie blender. "Y'all are loud as fuck." At least Yoongi had the decency to seem embarrassed, but Jimin just smirked as he put the lid on his blender and pressed the button to start it. "I cannot wait for my apartment to be ready." Hoseok said once Jimin was done blending his fruit."Yes, because living rent free is so horrible." Jimin retorted with a teasing tone as he went to the fridge to get some ice for his smoothie."When you have to listen to your best friends have sex, it is.""And on that note, I'm leaving." Yoongi said, his cheeks bright red as he walked over to Jimin to hug him from behind. "I'll be home later."Jimin hummed as Yoongi pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Don't be late, we're hanging out with Tae and Kookie this afternoon.""I can't control traffic." Yoongi pointed out as Jimin turned his head and puckered his lips. He softly kissed Jimin--earning a dramatic gag from Hoseok. "Love you.""Love you." Jimin responded, blending the ice into his smoothie as Yoongi left. "You sure you don't want to join us tonight?" Jimin asked Hoseok as he grabbed a straw for his smoothie.Hoseok shook his head. "I have plans tonight."Jimin hummed and took a sip of his smoothie. "So when are you gonna tell us about the person you're seeing?"He should have known Jimin had caught on. After all, Jimin had been a straight A student and had the street smarts to go with the book smarts. But he also wanted to keep Becky to himself for just a little bit longer as they learned to navigate their new relationship. So he chose to respond with, "When are you going to tell Yoongi that you actually do want to be married to him?""I don’t know what you're talking about." Jimin responded just a bit too quickly, padding out of the kitchen and towards the hallway with the bedrooms."He's already stressing himself out from thinking he took something away from you." Hoseok said."Then he's a dumbass." Jimin retorted before disappearing into his and Yoongi's bedroom.***Taehyung was sitting at a table in the bowling alley, mixing a bottle for Jihoon, when Jimin and Yoongi arrived, Jimin hurrying over to hug his best friend. "I feel like I haven't seen you in forever!" Jimin squealed before sitting down next to Taehyung."I know, why'd you have to move so far away?" Taehyung pouted.Before Jimin could answer, Yoongi interrupted to say he was gonna go get food from the concessions stand. "Can you get me a bacon cheeseburger?" Jimin asked as Woojin began to fuss, the 28-year-old automatically bouncing him lightly on his knee. "Pretty please?""Since you said please." Yoongi chuckled, leaning down to kiss Jimin before walking over to where Jungkook was already waiting for food with Jiwoo.Woojin started to fuss again, no longer soothed by the bouncing, so Jimin very quickly shifted him on his lap, so he was cradling him instead. "Are you grumpy today?""He just woke up from a nap." Jimin explained as he lifted his shirt just enough for Woojin to be able to latch on to nurse. He then nodded towards Jihoon's carseat. "Looks like someone else did too.""Well, hello there, Little Bun!" Taehyung smiled brightly at the four-month-old as he reached down to get him out of his carseat. "Did you sleep well?" Jihoon gurgled a bit in response as Taehyung grabbed the bottle he'd made for him. By the time Taehyung brought the bottle to his lips, the four-month old's attention seemed to be completely on Woojin nursing. "You're not used to seeing that, are you?" Taehyung giggled as he got Jihoon to start eating his bottle. "Sorry, your mama's boobs are broken."Jimin lightly kicked at his best friend. "Don't call them broken." He softly scolded before changing the subject. "Have you and Jungkook figured out the moving in together thing yet?"Taehyung sighed. "Well, we were going to look at places in Little Rock since that's where Jungkook's current nanny gig is, and Seokjin already said we could stay with him as long as it took us to find a place…but then Namjoon happened." Jimin frowned. "We don't want to leave him alone with how high the rent's increasing when the lease renews. But there's also not a lot of people eager to room with someone who's currently unemployed and autistic…""It really sucks." Jimin mumbled."Yeah, and then we thought about you know just me moving in with Jungkook and Namjoon." Taehyung said. "But their apartment complex has this stupid rule about not having more than two people per bedroom per apartment, and the only exceptions are for pups under two, so with Jiwoo turning two next month, that's not really an option." He sighed deeply."You'll figure something out soon." Jimin assured him as Woojin unlatched from his breast and immediately began wiggling towards his other one."Hopefully." Taehyung mumbled. "Anyway, is life still as great as all your texts have been saying?"Now it was Jimin who sighed as he helped Woojin latch on again. "Until this morning. According to Hoseok, Yoongi thinks that I'm unhappy with us not being married even though I'm not."Taehyung tilted his head. "Well, I don't really blame him. I've seen your wedding board on Pinterest." Jimin shot him a look. "Hey, people who are happy not getting married typically wouldn't plan out their dream wedding.""I can be happy with my relationship with Yoongi and still fantasize about something." Jimin pointed out. "Does me fantasizing about being a millionaire so I don't have to worry about finances again mean I'm not happy with Yoongi and his current income?" Taehyung pursed his lips as he considered that, as it was a very valid point. "Yoongi is my forever, and that's all I need." The conversation was cut off after that as Yoongi and Jungkook finally arrived with their food, Yoongi placing Jimin's burger in front of him. "Thank you, baby!" Jimin puckered his lips to receive a kiss from the alpha.Woojin decided he was done nursing at that point and wiggled until Jimin adjusted him so he was sitting up in his lap. "You wanna try a french fry?" Yoongi asked the six-month-old as he eyed the food, holding a french fry out to him. Woojin blinked at the french fry before reaching out to take it. He immediately brought it to his mouth and gummed at it. "Is it yummy?" Yoongi asked, chuckling at the bright smile that appeared on Woojin's face.
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"I can't remember the last time I went bowling." Becky admitted as Hoseok led her into the bowling alley."Is this where you tell me this is already the worst date you've ever been on?" Hoseok chuckled.Becky shook her head as she smiled up at him. "Never."Despite the bowling alley being fairly busy--as expected for a Friday evening--Hoseok's hearing zeroed in on a group of familiar voices. His gaze soon followed to find that the hangout he'd declined was in fact at the very place he'd brought Becky for their date, seeing as he was now watching Jungkook help Jiwoo roll a bowling ball down the slope for young pups who were just learning how to play the game. "Very last-minute warning, but it looks like you might be about to meet my friends for the first time." Hoseok informed Becky as they walked up to the counter to rent their shoes and pay for a game."Should be fun." Becky said with just a hint of nervousness in her voice.By the time they got their shoes and headed to their lane--which was conveniently next to the one Hoseok's friends were using--they seemed to be packing up to leave. "Hey, Hobi!" Jimin was the first to spot him, not so subtly glancing towards Becky with a 'I knew it' expression as the others greeted him."Hey, guys. This is Becky." Hoseok introduced her before naming each of his friends."It's very nice to meet you guys." Becky said with a somewhat nervous smile."It's nice to meet you too." Taehyung said before turning towards Jihoon's carseat. "I'd love to stay and get to know you, but it's nearly this one's bedtime." He pressed a kiss to the four-month old's cheek before placing him in his car seat."And this one needs a bath." Yoongi said as he bounced Woojin slightly in his arms."I'm sure we'll be seeing each other again soon." Becky said, waving as the group of four left with their respective pups. "They seem nice.""Oh no, they're insane." Hoseok deadpanned, making Becky laugh brightly. "They just lure you in with false comfort before unleashing it."Becky continued to laugh as Hoseok started setting up their scoreboard for their game. "Well, I look forward to seeing the real them then."***Seokjin was mixing sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt together to get started on Jiwoo's birthday cake when harsh whispers hit his ears. He glanced up to see Jungkook and Taehyung almost bickering about something just in the entrance to the hallway. Then Jungkook nudged Taehyung towards the kitchen before ducking back into the hallway. "Hey, big brother!" Taehyung said with a tone that Seokjin recognized very well. "Have I told you how much I appreciate you making Jiwoo's birthday cake?""What do you want?" Seokjin asked, glancing to the hallway again to see Jungkook peeking out at him with an almost terrified gaze. "And what's wrong with Jungkook?""You intimidate him." Taehyung said but didn't bother to elaborate. "Anyway, I'm not sure if you've heard, but Namjoon lost his job." Seokjin paused in his baking at the news, heart tugging for the alpha that he still barely knew. "Which is why it's taken so long for me and Jungkook to come to a decision on moving in together. But we think we have one."Seokjin stared at Taehyung. "I'm assuming it has to do with me."Taehyung nodded, smiling as innocently as he could. "We were thinking that maybe Namjoon could move in here since you love me and would do anything for me and my friends, and me and Jungkook stay in his apartment.""Okay.""And he is on unemployment and trying for disability along with looking for a job, so he'd be willing to pay you some kind of rent--wait, what?" Taehyung stared at Seokjin in shock."I said okay." Seokjin shrugged as he moved to grab the eggs to add to the mixture. "He can move in."Taehyung narrowed his eyes. "You're not gonna talk about how I owe you 50 million favors? Or make all these conditions."Seokjin shook his head. "He's obviously in a bind, and I'm not going to make it harder on him. Tell him he can live here as long as he needs to." Taehyung still seemed in a state of disbelief but nodded anyway. "Now back to Jungkook being intimidated by me.""Everyone intimidates him." Taehyung said with a fond eye roll before leaving to rejoin Jungkook. "I told you it would be fine!""My anxiety didn't want to listen!" Jungkook pouted as Taehyung dragged him back to their bedroom.***"So when do we get to see Becky again?" Jimin asked as he sat on the floor of Hoseok's new living room with Woojin, Yoongi helping Hoseok arrange furniture across the room from them."You see her quite often." Hoseok pointed out.Jimin pouted. "Not enough. You didn't even bring her to Jiwoo's birthday party last month."Hoseok sighed. "Because she doesn't know y'all well enough for that yet.""And how are we supposed to get to know her if you don't bring her places with us?" Yoongi asked."Fine." Hoseok gave in. "I'll invite her to Jungkook's birthday dinner.""Good." Jimin nodded in approval, obviously happy with himself as he looked down at Woojin. "You wanna meet Hobi's girlfriend too? Have someone else dote on and spoil you like you deserve?""Or he wants someone else who won't give in." Yoongi said as if he wasn't the biggest culprit of spoiling the nine-month-old.The sound of his voice had Woojin turning to him and smiling brightly, waving his arms in excitement. "Did you hear Daddy?" Jimin giggled as Woojin wiggled from a seated position to laying on his stomach. "You love your daddy, don't you-oh my god!" Yoongi and Hoseok both turned to see what Jimin's freak out was over and found Woojin attempting to crawl--more of a scoot but he was moving forward a bit. "He's crawling!" Jimin hurried to pull out his phone and film it while Yoongi abandoned his work of helping Hoseok to crouch in front of Woojin and encourage him further."Yeah, just leave me to do this alone." Hoseok grumbled good naturedly but continued to watch Woojin crawl towards Yoongi with a fond smile of his own.
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Seokjin would forever be grateful for the invention of DoorDash, particularly the feature where he was not required to interact with the person delivering his food. He sighed in satisfaction from the scent rising from the bag of food he grabbed from his porch, happily setting it on the coffee table. Then he padded down the hallway to what used to be Taehyung and Jungkook’s room but was now Namjoon’s as the alpha had officially moved in that morning after a few weeks of slowly trading the couple’s belongings for his own. He gently knocked on the door and waited for Namjoon to respond before pushing it open. “Wow, it’s like a greenhouse in here.” Seokjin mused as he found Namjoon gently spritzing water over an array of plants. “I didn’t know you were into plants.”Namjoon nodded excitedly. “These are my babies.” He said very matter of factly, setting the spray bottle down. “This is my youngest, Sweetie. I just got her to commemorate the move, and she’s a philodendron birkin. I’ve always wanted one, but they’re toxic to dogs so I held off for Bam’s sake.” He pointed to the next pot in his windowsill. “And this is Dumpling, she’s an echeveria.” He crossed the room to his second window. “Button is a pilea peperomioide. They originate from the Yunnan province in China. And this is Aphrodite, she’s very helpful during the summer when the ants come, but she’ll be able to rest a bit soon.” Seokjin couldn’t help but giggle at the fond smile Namjoon had as he gazed at the Venus fly trap. Then the alpha hurried over to his nightstand where a miniature tree rested. “And this is Noodle, my bonsai. I’ve had her since high school and…” Namjoon suddenly trailed off, his smile faltering a bit.“What’s wrong?” Seokjin asked, concerned for the abrupt change in the alpha’s mood.“I just realized I’m probably boring you talking about this.” Namjoon said with a tone that told Seokjin someone had said that exact thing to the alpha before.Seokjin quickly shook his head. “You’re not. I love hearing people talk about the things they’re passionate about.” A tiny smile appeared on Namjoon’s face. “Besides, I’ll probably subject you to my rambles about fishing or gaming at some point.” Namjoon let out a small chuckle that had Seokjin smiling again. The omega then spotted three more plants sitting on Namjoon’s desk. “What about those ones?”Namjoon crossed the room to stand by his desk. “Majesty, my African violets. Amy, my rosemary. And Bugsy, my aeoniums.” He shifted a bit awkwardly. “I was actually going to ask if I could put these in the kitchen. These two need more direct light than what these windows give,” he pointed to Amy and Bugsy, “and Majesty used to sit in the living room because he brightens the place up.”“You don’t have to ask permission to do that.” Seokjin said. “This is your house too for the moment.” Namjoon opened his mouth as if to argue that he was just a tenant and Seokjin was his landlord, but Seokjin didn’t give him the chance. “As long as you’re not a slob and clean up after yourself, I don’t care what you do to make this place feel like yours.” He smiled warmly at Namjoon, feeling stomach flutters when the alpha looked away shyly. Then he cleared his throat. “Anyway, I came to tell you that I ordered Wingstop for dinner. I overheard you telling Jungkook when y’all were moving everything in that you were craving their Korean BBQ wings.”“Thank you.” Namjoon said with a slightly surprised expression as he picked up his three plants, most likely with the intention to place them in the kitchen. Seokjin took the pot of African violets from him to help as they left the room, placing it in the center of the coffee table in the living room and admiring how well it completed the space.***“Do you like your new bed?” Jungkook asked Jiwoo as he sat on the floor next to the bed in question with the chosen bedtime story for the night. Jiwoo responded by giggling as she jumped slightly on the mattress.Taehyung padded into the room at that moment carrying Jihoon who was wrapped in a purple hooded towel. “Can you get him dressed so I can fix his bottle?”Jungkook nodded and set the book on the floor, holding his arms up to accept the seven month old. “Dada dada dada…” Jihoon babbled with a bright smile.“Do you love your dada?” Taehyung giggled, pressing a kiss to Jihoon’s forehead before grabbing the pajamas, diaper, and lotion they’d already set out for after his bath and passing them to Jungkook.“Dada loves you.” Jungkook kissed Jihoon’s cheek before laying him on the floor so he could pat him dry while Taehyung left to go fix his bedtime bottle.Jiwoo stopped bouncing on her bed and climbed off of it, patting Jungkook’s shoulder. “Koo Dada.”Jungkook paused for a moment, his chest growing warm at the apparent new title she had for him. “Yes, Jiwoo?” Jungkook asked as he didn’t want to make a big deal out of or draw attention to her calling him Dada.“Night night book?” The two year old asked, pointing to the book sitting in the floor.“Just one second, JiJi.” Jungkook assured her as he squirted some lotion into his hands. “As soon as Jihoon’s dressed, I’ll read your bedtime story.” Jiwoo pouted and picked up the book, holding it out to Jungkook. “Once Jihoon’s dressed, I’ll read it.” Jungkook repeated, causing Jiwoo to pout even more as he gently massaged the lotion into Jihoon’s skin.Once the seven month old was diapered and in his pajamas, Taehyung returned with his bottle. “Let’s get your tummy full for bedtime.” The omega cooed as he picked Jihoon up, carrying him to the chair that rested between Jiwoo’s new bed and the crib Jungkook’s poppa had bought as a pup shower present but had yet to be used.Jiwoo wasted no time flopping into Jungkook’s lap and thrusting the book at him. “Night night book.”Jungkook happily read the Mickey Mouse story to Jiwoo while Taehyung rocked and fed Jihoon. Then Jungkook tucked Jiwoo into bed while Taehyung gently lay a sleeping Jihoon in his crib. After switching places so Taehyung could give Jiwoo a goodnight kiss and Jungkook could give Jihoon one, they left the room, making sure the pups’ night light was on before closing the door. “You sure they’ll be okay?” Taehyung’s anxiety instantly made itself known, the omega having only masked it so as not to pass it in to Jiwoo and Jihoon.“They’re right next door and we have our pup monitor on the nightstand.” Jungkook assured Taehyung. “All they have to do is make one sound and we’ll be back in here.”Taehyung nodded, but it was obvious he was still a bit nervous about leaving their pups in their own room for the first time as they moved to continue unpacking. “The bed’s gonna feel so empty tonight.” He pouted as he arranged his favorite nesting items around the bed.Jungkook hummed, turning away from the closet where he’d been hanging up some of Taehyung’s clothes. “Yeah but we also have it to ourselves.” He pointed out, wiggling his eyebrows playfully at his boyfriend.The implication dawned on Taehyung instantly, his excitement clear on his face as he settled in the middle of his finished nest. “Very true…you wanna take a break from unpacking?”In an instant, Jungkook was in the nest with Taehyung, the omega giggling as their lips met repeatedly in a series of short, sweet kisses. Taehyung slowly leaned back until he was lying against the pillows, pulling Jungkook on top of him as he kissed him more deeply. His legs spread naturally to accommodate the alpha, the feeling of Jungkook pressing against him enough to have a trickle of slick leaking out of him. Taehyung let a quiet moan slip out as he bucked his hips up against Jungkook, hands gripping at the hem of the alpha’s shirt.Then Jungkook abruptly broke the kiss. “One second…” He mumbled, climbing off of Taehyung just long enough to get a condom from the nightstand. “Gonna be responsible this time.”“Good idea.” Taehyung laughed as Jungkook climbed back on top of him, the alpha immediately capturing his lips in another searing kiss.It wasn’t long before they were both undressed, their clothes a pile on the floor as Jungkook struggled to open the condom packet with the way his hands were trembling. “Why are you nervous?” Taehyung asked with a frown.“Because this is essentially our first time together.” Jungkook said, finally getting the packet open and pulling the condom out.Taehyung blinked up at his boyfriend as he rolled the condom down his member. “We literally have a pup together.”“Yeah but we were drunk and that was over a year ago.” Jungkook said so seriously that it had Taehyung giggling again.“Have I ever told you how cute you are?” Taehyung asked, excitement rushing through him as Jungkook gripped the base of his member, pressing it against Taehyung’s entrance.“Once or twice.” Jungkook said before gently pushing inside, causing Taehyung’s breath to hitch. He then leaned down to kiss him again before slowly pushing in deeper until he was bottomed out. “You good?” Jungkook whispered against Taehyung’s lips.Taehyung nodded, wrapping his arms around Jungkook’s waist. “More than good.” He bucked his hips to tiniest bit to encourage Jungkook to move.Resting his forearms on either side of Taehyung’s head, Jungkook softly kissed Taehyung again as he pulled out and pushed back in, setting a slow pace from the beginning, his thrusts reaching deeper than Taehyung had even realized was possible. He wrapped his legs around Jungkook’s waist, digging his nails into the alpha’s back slightly as he felt him hit that spot inside him. “Keep going…like that.” Jungkook listened well and repeated that same movement, burying his face in Taehyung’s neck as he sped up his thrusts the tiniest bit. Taehyung had to bite his lip to hold back moans, especially when Jungkook began to nip lightly at his scent gland. Before Taehyung knew it, his climax was washing over him in waves, Jungkook bringing their lips back together to swallow his cries of pleasure as sped up his thrusts to chase after his own high. It was as Taehyung was coming back down that Jungkook groaned lowly into the kiss, stilling as he spilled into the condom.They were both quiet for a moment, just focused on catching their breath between soft kisses. Then Jungkook carefully pulled out of Taehyung and moved to climb off the bed, an action that had the omega whining. “No! Cuddles!”“Let me throw this away and clean you off first.” Jungkook said, leaning down to give Taehyung another kiss to hopefully keep him satisfied as he hurried out to the bathroom. He returned moments later with a warm, wet washcloth and gently cleaned Taehyung up before his slick could start to dry and become uncomfortable. Then he tossed that into the laundry hamper and pulled out a clean pair of underwear for himself and a fresh pair of panties and one of his own shirts for Taehyung. After dressing Taehyung, he climbed back into bed and pulled Taehyung into his chest, the omega happily scenting him. “So it was good?”Taehyung snorted, pulling his face out of Jungkook’s neck to look at him. “It was perfect.” He assured the alpha, pressing a kiss to the tip of his nose. “I love you.” He then pressed his lips to Jungkook’s.“Love you.” Jungkook mumbled into the kiss just before Taehyung broke it so that he could nuzzle against his scent gland again.
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Seokjin's kitchen was full of almost pained groans from Jungkook, the alpha's eyebrows furrowed into an angry expression. Yet no one seemed to be concerned except for Becky. "Is he okay?" Becky whispered to Hoseok."Oh yeah, this is normal Jungkook." Hoseok assured her. "He gets angry when he's enjoying his food." Another groan came out of Jungkook as if to emphasize his point.Taehyung giggled at his boyfriend before turning to Becky. "So how did you and Hoseok meet?" He asked while feeding Jihoon a small spoonful of chili.Becky glanced at Hoseok, as if to gauge his reaction. After all they didn't have a 'traditional' start to their relationship, and Hoseok could see why she would want him to take the lead to see how much he was comfortable sharing with his friends. Which after all the shit they'd put him through, it was a lot. "I take care of her grandma." Becky seemed a bit surprised by the lack of shocked reactions, so Hoseok turned to her. "Jimin was underage when he and Yoongi met, and Jungkook was Taehyung's pupsitter and got him pregnant, so they really have no business judging us.""Fuck you too, Hoseok.""Don't curse in front of my pups!""You curse in front of them all the time!""That's different!"Becky laughed as Taehyung and Jimin continued to bicker while Yoongi ignored them and Jungkook stayed focused on his food. "I like your friends." She whispered to Hoseok."Trust me, they like you too." Hoseok whispered back."Thank you so much for dinner, Seokjin." Jungkook finally said. "Best dinner ever."Seokjin smiled and gestured to Namjoon next to him. "Thank Namjoon, he did most of the cooking tonight."Jungkook's eyes widened and he looked between his former roommate and his boyfriend's older brother in disbelief. "Namjoon cooked this?" Namjoon nodded, his cheeks flushed slightly. "And he didn't burn anything?""He's actually a pretty good cook when he puts his mind to it." Seokjin praised him, making the alpha's cheeks flush even more. "Especially pasta dishes. You should've been here for the spaghetti he made the other day."“I’m not that good.” Namjoon said quietly, his cheeks redder than anyone thought was possible.After they finished eating, the birthday dinner wrapped up fairly quickly as the resident parents wanted to get back to Conway in time to get their pups bathed and put to bed at a decent time. Seokjin went out with Taehyung to help him put the pups in the car and to say bye to the other as they left while Jungkook and Namjoon’s changed their birthday presents for each other in private—something about how neither of them likes doing presents in front of a crowd. “Thanks again for dinner.” Taehyung said as he buckled Jihoon into his car seat.“Of course.” Seokjin said as he buckled Jiwoo in. He bit his lip as a thought he’d been having came to his mind, but he wasn’t quite sure if now was the time to ask Taehyung or how to even go about it. Then he decided he might as well get it over with now. “Tae, you’re pretty good at flirting with alphas, right?” Taehyung looked at Seokjin in confusion. “I mean, you had a new alpha that you were ‘hanging out with’ like every week, and I know that you were the one to initiate all of your more serious relationships.” Taehyung continued to stare at Seokjin, who could feel his ears turning red. “I just, I wanna know how you did it. Like, how were you able to be confident enough to first know that the alpha was interested in you and then to actively pursue them without worrying that they’d reject you and what does flirting even look like?”“I wouldn’t say I wasn’t worried.” Taehyung snorted. “And you’re the one who was engaged before. Shouldn’t you know how to flirt and do all that stuff?”“Yeah but…” Seokjin had to pause to take a breath as the familiar need to cry that always accompanied the mention of his prior engagement hit him. “Andrew approached me, he asked me out, he initiated everything.”“Then what about the alphas from Knotted?” Taehyung asked.“I always made sure they wouldn’t come until I was deep in my heats and arranged for them to leave as soon as it was over before I was back in my right mind so I wouldn’t have to deal with the awkwardness.” Seokjin informed him. “Now please help me.”Taehyung furrowed his eyebrows. “Why do you-“ he cut himself off, eyes widening with realization. “You like Namjoon!”“I…” Seokjin cleared his throat, feeling his ears grow hot. “I find him intriguing.” Taehyung squealed, making Seokjin feel even more embarrassed. “He’s just…he’s different than the other alphas I know. And I don’t know if him being different has my interest piqued or if I actually like him in that way.” Rather than being helpful, Taehyung just continued to squeal over the fact that his brother had a crush on an alpha for the first time in almost 10 years. “Seriously, Tae! I need you to teach me how to flirt so I can test the waters and see if there is possibly something there-““Who’s ready to go home and get some baths?” Jungkook unknowingly interrupted as he skipped up to the car, Jiwoo and Jihoon instantly giggling at the alpha’s voice.“Drive safe.” Seokjin said as he stepped back from the car, giving Taehyung a look that he hoped said to keep his mouth shut and not tell anyone what Seokjin had just shared with him or he would disown him as his brother. “Let me know when you get home so I know you’re not dead.””Nah I think I’m gonna make you sweat a bit.” Taehyung said with an infuriating smirk, climbing in the car as Seokjin glared harder at him.
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Yoongi was the kind of person whose body was strict with its internal clock. Sleeping in on the weekends just wasn't an option, as his body would automatically wake him up around the same time he normally got up to get ready for work. That was the reason why he was currently sitting up against the headboard at 6:30 in the morning after being awake for nearly an hour. The reason he hadn't left the bed to go get started on breakfast was because of the omega sleeping with his back to him, his arm stretched out to rest over their 11-month-old pup who was sleeping away in his bassinet. Woojin had been up most of the night with teething pains, and despite Yoongi's best attempts at being the one to stay up with and soothe the infant, reminding Jimin that he already did that during the work week so the least Yoongi could do was take over on his days off, Jimin had refused, claiming that since Yoongi did most of the cooking, covered the household chores on his days off, and was the main income provider, that he was happy to continue sacrificing his sleep at night. Especially since he wouldn't be able to sleep through Woojin's whimpers of pain anyway.So now Yoongi's mind was spiraling down as he thought about just how willing Jimin always was to sacrifice his needs and wants in their relationship. From moving to Little Rock before he'd even graduated college and making the 45-minute commute--on a good traffic day--to school every day, to working two jobs while going to school full time in his attempt to pay off Yoongi's surgery even though it shouldn’t have been his responsibility. And of course, the most pressing matter weighing on Yoongi--marriage. There was a huge part of Yoongi that felt like he'd stolen that from Jimin by saying so early on in their relationship that he didn't believe in the institution of marriage and the government's involvement. Which he didn't, the government had no right to police what did and didn't constitute a lifelong partnership. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized they never truly had a conversation about it. He'd never directly asked Jimin his thoughts on marriage. Rather the omega who had been extremely young at the time had just accepted Yoongi's stance as his and moved on. And that kept bringing Yoongi back to the same question--was Jimin actually happy or was he just settling?"It is way too early for your brain to be working that hard." Jimin suddenly grumbled as he rolled over, cuddling up against the alpha."Good morning." Yoongi mumbled, leaning down to press a kiss to Jimin's forehead.Jimin sleepily mumbled back, not even opening his eyes as he nuzzled against Yoongi's scent gland. "It's my birthday, you're not allowed to be so anxious.""I'm not anxious." Yoongi denied."Don't lie to me." Jimin scolded, lightly hitting Yoongi's stomach. Then he lifted his head slightly, squinting open his eyes. "What's wrong?""Nothing's wrong." Yoongi insisted only to have Jimin narrow his eyes at him in suspicion. The alpha sighed, lightly running his hand over Jimin's back. "Are you happy?""At this very moment, I'm exhausted." Jimin deadpanned. "But in general, of course I'm happy. Why wouldn't I be?"Yoongi shrugged slightly, but the way Jimin was still staring at him had him answering. "Because we're not married-"Jimin cut him off with a groan. "Not this again.""I just think it's not fair that I got to make that decision for you when neither of us were truly old enough to have that discussion." Yoongi said as Jimin pulled away from him to sit up."We did have a discussion." Jimin argued."'I don't believe in marriage.' 'Okay.' Great discussion there." Yoongi retorted. "I never actually asked you what your opinion is.""It doesn't matter." Jimin insisted, causing Yoongi to frown. "Baby, if marriage was this big of an issue for me, then why would I stay with you for nine and half years knowing that it would never happen?"Yoongi shrugged. "Why have you?""Because I love you, doofus." Jimin reached out to flick him on the forehead. "And that's all that matters. That you love me, I love you, and we're happy together. Whether we're married or not.""But you would like to be married." Yoongi stated, as even though he was hearing Jimin's words, his brain was still telling him that Jimin wasn't as happy as he was insisting."Oh my god." Jimin groaned, burying his face in his hands for a second. "What do you want here, Yoongi?""For you to be 100% honest.""In what way? Because I am!" Yoongi looked down at his lap, picking nervously at a stray string on his pajama pants. Jimin sighed. "If you're wanting me to admit that I was one of those stereotypical omegas that fantasized about their future wedding and what married life would be like, then yes I was." And there it was, so Yoongi thought. "But that was back in middle school. Are you the same person you were back in middle school, because I'm certainly not." Yoongi opened his mouth to respond, but Jimin apparently wasn't finished talking. "Sure, getting to wear a pretty white dress and having a piece of paper that says we're committed to each other may have been what I dreamed of as a pup, but my dream as an adult is to be with an alpha who is my soulmate and best friend wrapped into one. Someone who bullies me the way I bully him but will still be the first person by my side when something serious happens. Someone who I can have wild hot monkey sex that would put 50 Shades to shame with one night, then the next make the sweetest most passionate love to, and the next do absolutely nothing but sit silently next to each other as we do our own thing. Someone who is the most loving and attentive father, who actually takes part in raising and caring for our pup instead of being some knothead. Someone who loves me so much that they become a dumbass while making sure I'm happy, and someone I love so much that whenever I even so much as think about a possibility of not being with them in the future, it literally hurts, and I can't breathe." He grabbed Yoongi's hands to stop him from picking at the string and moved to sit in his lap. "My dream is you. I don’t need a pretty white dress or a piece of paper as long as I have you." Jimin said with so much sincerity that not even the most self-deprecating, anxiety riddled part of Yoongi's brain could deny it. "I love you." Jimin then whispered before softly pressing his lips to Yoongi's."I love you." Yoongi murmured into the kiss, gently cupping Jimin's face as the omega shifted them until they were laying down. Then a new thought hit Yoongi. One that would both make Jimin happy and help prevent another thought spiral in the future. "You would look very pretty in a white dress." He whispered, lightly running his thumb over Jimin's cheek."Oh, I would be so gorgeous." Jimin giggled against Yoongi's lips."Then let's get you one." Yoongi said, causing Jimin to pull back slightly in surprise. "We can have a wedding without doing the legal paperwork."Jimin's eyes lit up as he sat up slightly so he was looking down at Yoongi. "Really?"Yoongi reached up to boop his nose. "I knew you wanted one!""Shut up before you ruin the moment." Jimin giggled as he leaned down to kiss Yoongi again.Their kiss was cut short by Woojin babbling in his bassinet, letting them know that he was awake. "Good morning, puppy!" Jimin greeted the 11-month-old happily as he sat up, crawling back to his side of the bed so he could pick Woojin up. "Is that tooth done bothering you?" He asked as Woojin began tugging at his shirt as he always did when he was ready to nurse."I'm gonna go get started on your birthday breakfast." Yoongi started to climb out of bed, pausing to press a good morning kiss to Woojin's forehead."Can eggs be included in that?" Jimin asked as Woojin started to nurse before puckering his lips for another kiss. "Woojin's been really liking those lately."Yoongi nodded and pressed his lips to Jimin's again. "I'll whip some up." He kissed Jimin one more time before leaving the room.
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"I'm gonna make sure to include in my speech how anti marriage you were." Taehyung said as he, Jimin, and Seokjin sat around the oldest omega's kitchen table as they got started on wedding planning."We're not getting married." Jimin argued, playfully kicking Taehyung. "It's a commitment ceremony to show how we are dedicated to spending the rest of our lives together."Taehyung blinked. "That's literally marriage.""But without the government butting in." Jimin deadpanned before turning to the resident wedding planner. "I think I've decided on mauve as my color." Taehyung snorted and mimicked the way Jimin said mauve, earning an elbow to the stomach."That's actually one of the top colors of the year." Seokjin said, which caused Jimin to turn to Taehyung and stick his tongue out. "You could do gold as an accent unless you have another color in mind."Jimin shook his head. "Gold sounds good."As the trio of omegas continued to plan, Namjoon traipsed into the kitchen. "Don't mind me, just looking for where I left my pruning shears." He said."You're fine." Seokjin waved him off without looking up from his iPad where he was making notes of everything Jimin wanted for his wedding. Namjoon searched through the kitchen for a while before opening the junk drawer, at which point he froze, his scent showing slight anxiety. "Everything okay?""Yeah." Namjoon said. "Just worried I might accidentally ruin a surprise."The three omegas looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean?" Seokjin asked only to feel that same sadness when the alpha turned around with a familiar ring box in his hands. He quickly shook it off and jumped up from his chair. "Nope, not ruining any surprise. That's mine and I must have forgotten it was there." He hurried over to Namjoon and plucked the ring box from his hands. "I'll just go put it away somewhere else.Namjoon watched him scurry off in confusion before turning to Jimin and Taehyung. "What?"The two omegas shared a look before turning back to him. "It's a long story." Taehyung said sheepishly."Is he okay?" Namjoon asked in concern. "He seemed really…sad." Taehyung bit his lip as Namjoon continued. "And was that actually an engagement ring? Why does he have one?"Taehyung shared another look with Jimin before answering. "Seokjin was engaged nine years ago. The breakup was really bad. And he hasn't been able to get rid of the ring." Taehyung answered vaguely, not wanting to give Namjoon too many details."Oh…" Namjoon said, looking back towards Seokjin's room where the omega had disappeared with a contemplative look on his face.Seokjin returned after a moment with an obviously forced smile. "Let's get back to planning! Have you decided what theme you want to go for yet?" He sat back down at the table, pretending like nothing had happened.***"Thanks again for having me stay for dinner." Hoseok said as Becky walked him out of the house and to his car."It's the least I can do for the guy who takes care of my abuela." Becky giggled, wrapping her arms around herself to fight off the slight chill of the October night air. "And for my boyfriend, I guess.""That still has a nice ring to it." Hoseok admitted, making Becky's smile grow. He leaned down to gently press his lips to hers in a sweet, goodnight kiss. "I'll see you tomorrow?"Becky nodded and kissed him again before stepping back to let him get into his car. Before he closed the door, she very quickly said, "I love you," before hurrying back into the house without giving him a chance to properly process those three words.When he had, his smile grew, his head falling back against his seat. "I love you too." He said to himself, making a mental note to tell her first thing in the morning when he arrived to take care of Manuela as he started his car.***Yoongi rolled over after turning his alarm off to find that Woojin was sleeping soundly in their bed as opposed to his bedside crib, the toddler laying on his stomach with his knees up under him so his butt was in the air and his face near Jimin's still exposed breast, as if the omega had fallen asleep straight after an early morning nursing session. Yoongi smiled at the sight, taking a moment to memorize every detail before he had to get ready for work. Just before climbing out of bed, he leaned over and pressed a kiss to Woojin's chubby cheek that he had gotten from Jimin. "Happy birthday, little one." He whispered, pressing another kiss to his cheek. He then leaned over even further to softly kiss Jimin's pouted out lips, the omega letting out a sigh in his sleep and shifting to get more comfortable. After another second, Yoongi forced himself out of bed and into the bathroom to start his morning routine.By the time Yoongi was showered and dressed for work, Jimin was unsurprisingly in the kitchen, yawning as he fixed the alpha's morning coffee for him. "You don't have to do this." Yoongi said just like he did every morning."I want to." Jimin replied with a soft smile like always, leaning in to softly kiss Yoongi as he handed him his travel mug.Yoongi smiled against Jimin's lips before pulling back, taking a sip of his coffee that was made exactly as he liked it. "I'm gonna go to Patticakes before I come home." Yoongi informed Jimin as they headed towards the door. "Get a little treat for Woojin.""He'll love that." Jimin said, hugging himself as Yoongi tugged his work bag over his shoulder. "Drive safe. Let me know when you get to work." Yoongi nodded that he would and, after another few kisses until Jimin was satisfied, left for work.When he returned home that afternoon, he followed the sound of Jimin softly singing to their bedroom, after setting the container of cupcakes on the kitchen counter, where he realized, belatedly, that the omega was trying to soothe their pup to sleep. He could tell that Woojin was just about to fall asleep, so he tried to quietly back out of the room only for the toddler's gaze to drift over to him. "Dada!" The 12-month-old exclaimed, squirming in Jimin's arms as he tried to reach out for Yoongi.Jimin playfully glared at Yoongi. "I've been trying to get him down for half an hour." He said as Yoongi took Woojin into his arms. "I almost had him.""I got him." Yoongi said, cradling Woojin close. "You go take a break.""Fine." Jimin playfully huffed before smiling at Woojin. "You take a good nap so we can have your birthday treat." He said, kissing the toddler on the nose before leaving Yoongi to try to get him to sleep.
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Seokjin glanced at Namjoon as he stirred the pot on the stove, frowning in concern. He could tell the alpha was a bit depressed when he'd gotten home from work, and despite Namjoon's obvious attempts to hide it, Seokjin could tell there was still something bothering him. With their dinner finished, Seokjin quickly filled them each up a bowl and carried them into the living room, handing one to Namjoon. "Everything okay?""Yeah." Namjoon said but it didn't sound convincing. Still, Seokjin knew better than to push him before he was ready to talk. Surprisingly, that was only a few minutes. "Job searching just isn't going very well still. Nothing specific happened today but it's just one of those days where it's hitting me hard. My brain telling me that I'm worthless and lazy-""Stop that." Seokjin softly scolded. "You're not worthless and you're certainly not lazy. You're doing everything you can to try to find a job. It's not your fault that the job market is literal shit right now. Plus it's not like you sit around and do nothing all day. When you're not applying to jobs, you're cleaning the house for me and taking care of your babies." A tiny smile appeared at Namjoon's face at the fact that Seokjin used his term of endearment for his plants."Thanks." Namjoon said quietly before taking another bite.As they finished their dinner, an idea hit Seokjin. "Have you considered that? Starting, like, a gardening business or something." Namjoon glanced at him with furrowed eyebrows. "I mean, I'm not sure exactly how to go about it but I do know I see people on TikTok do that. Like they consult people on how to do their own gardens, they sell their own seeds, they sell the plants they grow themselves, stuff like that. That could be something to look into, especially since it's something you love."Namjoon seemed to genuinely think it over before shaking his head. "I'd still need a job to make money in order to start something like that." He said, standing up and grabbing Seokjin's empty bowl so he could do the dishes like he did every night after dinner.***"There's no need to be nervous." Hoseok assured Becky as he pulled into his parents' driveway."Are you sure?" She asked, eyes wide with anxiety."Positive." Hoseok murmured, taking her hand and pressing a kiss to the back of it. "They're gonna love you just as much as I do." He leaned over to press his lips to hers.Once Becky was noticeably calmer, they climbed out of the car and headed up to the front door, Hoseok letting them in. He didn't even get to announce their arrival before his mom rushed out to greet them. "Hobi!" She pulled him into a hug, peppering kisses over his face until he was squirming out of her hold with a laugh. Then she turned to Becky. "And you must be Becky! We've heard so much about you!" She pulled Becky into a hug too."Hopefully only good things." Becky chuckled nervously."Don't you know? All I ever do is complain about you." Hoseok joked, succeeding in making Becky relax even more as she swatted at his arm.At that moment, Hoseok's mom ushered them to the living room where Hoseok's father was sitting in his chair. "Make yourselves comfy! Dinner should be ready soon!" She bustled off to the kitchen to finish cooking while Hoseok took the chance to introduce his dad to his girlfriend.***Seokjin took a deep breath outside the jewelers before walking into the shop. No backing out this time, he told himself as he approached the counter. "Hi." He greeted the staff behind the counter, nervously fiddling with the box in his hand. "I'm looking to have this ring appraised and possibly to sell it back." He placed the ring on the counter and pushed it across the glass towards the employee."Give us just one second to get our appraiser out here." She said before disappearing into the back room.The ring box seemed to glare at Seokjin, screaming at him to take it back and run. That he wasn't ready. But he refused as the money he would get from the ring would be going to something good. Something more important than his own trauma. Thankfully the employee returned with the appraiser before Seokjin's inner thoughts took control. "Let's see what you've got here." The appraiser said, carefully taking the ring out to examine it.Time seemed to pass at an excruciatingly slow rate as Seokjin waited for the value of the ring to be told to him. He was honestly expecting a couple hundred dollars at the most, given he obviously couldn't trust his ex for anything. So when the appraiser dropped $5000 as the estimated value, Seokjin nearly passed out. "You're serious?" He asked in disbelief.The appraiser nodded. "This is a fine quality gem. I'm surprised you don't want to keep it.""No I really don't." Seokjin said while also thinking that maybe his ex did have one redeeming quality--that he wasn't a cheapskate. "So you'll buy it back?""Of course." The staff nodded. "I'll take care of you at the service counter over here." Seokjin followed her, still in a state of disbelief.Once the ring had been fully returned and he had the cash in his hand, Seokjin felt like a huge weight had been lifted off his shoulders. Like a storm cloud had been hanging over him for nearly a decade and now there was only sunshine warming him. He headed out to his car with the envelope of cash and carefully placed it in the passenger seat before letting out the breath he'd been holding in the whole time. He sat there for a moment before pulling out his phone and calling Taehyung. "Hey, sorry I haven't sent you a happy birthday text today! Jiwoo's got a cold and then I've been swamped with work-""I did it." Seokjin said, a smile spreading across his face."You did what?""I sold the ring."There was a beat of silence before Taehyung responded. "And how do you feel?""So good." Seokjin breathed out a laugh, feeling a tear slip down his cheek.
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Namjoon was at the kitchen table on his laptop job searching yet again when Seokjin got home from work. The omega silently walked over to him and dropped the envelope in his hand onto the laptop's keyboard. "What is this?" Namjoon asked in confusion as he picked the envelope. When he opened it, his eyes immediately widened, and his head shot up to stare at Seokjin in disbelief. "What-""For your gardening business." Seokjin said, smiling as he sat in the chair next to Namjoon. "You can start it now.""I can't accept this." Namjoon refused, shaking his head."Consider it an investment." Seokjin insisted."But-""You can even pay me back if that'll make you feel more comfortable." Seokjin said and Namjoon continued to stare at him. "I want to do this for you, Namjoon. If it means you're doing something you love and you don't have to be stressed out all the time, then that's enough for-" Seokjin was cut off as Namjoon suddenly leaned forward and pressed his lips to his.Namjoon pulled away just as quickly, panic in his eyes. "I'm so sorry, I should have asked if that was okay first."As Namjoon continued to ramble an apology, Seokjin's surprise dissipated into another soft smile and he gently cupped Namjoon's face, pulling him into another, proper kiss. "Now we're even." He said quietly when he pulled away moments later."I…" Namjoon seemed at a loss for words, blinking rapidly as if he were trying to process. "So…does this…are we dating now?"Seokjin giggled and pressed his lips to Namjoon's again. "I'd like that." He whispered, smiling as Namjoon kissed him again.***"Here we are!" Hoseok announced as he pushed open their hotel room door. "Our home away from home for the weekend!"Becky giggled as she walked past him into the room. "You did good." She nodded in approval, dragging her suitcase off to the side.Hoseok smiled as Becky walked over to him and wrapped her arms around him. "So what do you want for dinner?" The alpha asked. "We can go out to eat or I can go pick something up or we can have something delivered.""I think dinner should wait." Becky said, rising up on her tiptoes to press her lips to Hoseok's. Hoseok's smile grew as he kissed her back, cupping her face as he walked them back towards the bed.Once they were on the bed, it didn’t take very long for Hoseok to pull back. "I should probably grab a condom before this progresses any further.""That's a good idea." Becky giggled as she agreed.Hoseok hurried over to his suitcase to get a condom from it before walking back over to Becky who had already began undressing herself. Hoseok stripped his own clothes and opened the condom packet, rolling the latex down his length before settling in between Becky's legs. He rubbed the tip of his dick through the slick leaking out of her before pushing inside.***When Taehyung came out of the bedroom at the end of his shift, he found Jungkook in the kitchen fixing a bottle for Jihoon who was propped on his hip. "Are you not asleep yet?" Taehyung cooed to the 11-month-old, reaching out to take him from the alpha."Nope." Jungkook smiled softly as he gently shook the bottle to mix up the formula. "Jiwoo went down easy for once, but now he's fighting.""You just want Mama to be the one to put you down, huh?" Taehyung asked, pressing a kiss to Jihoon's cheek before taking the now finished bottle from Jungkook. "I got him." He leaned in to press his lips to Jungkook's for a few seconds before carrying Jihoon to his and Jiwoo's bedroom to rock him.Once Jihoon was finally sleeping soundly in his crib, Taehyung quietly crouched next to Jiwoo's bed and pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead before leaving the room. He headed to his and Jungkook's room where he found the alpha seemingly practicing a speech while holding a princess cut diamond ring. Jungkook resembled a deer caught in headlights as he stared at Taehyung who was frozen in shock in the doorway. "What's that?" Taehyung asked."It's, uh, well…" Jungkook cleared his throat, his face turning bright red. Eventually, the alpha just silently sunk down to one knee and held the ring up towards Taehyung. "W-will you marry me?"Taehyung couldn't move for the longest time, his heart pounding and tears threatening to spill out. While this was everything he wanted, he had no idea it would ever actually happen. Trying not to cry, Taehyung slowly approached Jungkook and knelt in front of him. He carefully took the ring from Jungkook and placed it on his own finger, smiling at the alpha after. "So…that's a yes, right?" Jungkook asked."Yes." Taehyung laughed. "It's a complete and total yes.""Oh, thank god." Jungkook breathed out in relief, making Taehyung laugh harder as he kissed him, the alpha pulling him into his lap and holding him tightly. “Happy birthday.” Jungkook murmured against Taehyung’s lips.Taehyung smiled into the kiss, cupping Jungkook’s face gently. “Best birthday ever.” He whispered before bringing Jungkook’s lips to his once again.
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Jimin padded into the kitchen where Woojin was sitting in his highchair at the counter, the 14-month-old toddler banging his hands against the surface impatiently as Yoongi cut up an apple into bite size pieces for his snack. "Don't forget to think out that peanut butter." Jimin said after noticing the jar sitting out next to the bowl Yoongi was dropping the apple bites in. "We don’t want our little puppy to choke." Jimin leaned down to press a kiss to Woojin's cheek until he was squealing in laughter."I know." Yoongi said, smiling as Jimin walked over to give him a quick kiss. "Have fun on your little shopping trip.""I will." Jimin smiled, pressing his lips to Yoongi's again for a few seconds. "But I'll miss you so much." Jimin cooed as he returned to Woojin, leaning down to pepper his face in kisses again. "Mama will be right back." He assured the toddler. "I just gotta go to the store to get an engagement gift for Tae Tae. I'm not abandoning you."Yoongi snorted as he mixed a couple tablespoons of warm water with some peanut butter to thin it out. "I don't think he's concerned about that."Jimin shot Yoongi a playful glare before pressing another kiss to Woojin's forehead. "I love you, my little puppy." He glanced up at Yoongi. "And I guess I'm kind of fond of you.""The feeling's mutual." Yoongi blew Jimin a kiss as the omega left to head to the store. He drizzled the peanut butter over the bits of apple and sprinkled a little bit of cinnamon on top before setting the bowl in front of Woojin. "Eat up, buddy." Yoongi said, ruffling the toddler's hair as he immediately dug into the apples, peanut butter smearing across his cheeks as he brought the tiny bits to his mouth.Once Woojin was done with his snack, Yoongi cleaned his hands and face off, before taking him to his room to dress him in some warm clothes. Then he took Woojin outside to their deck so he could get some fresh air. With how frigid the January air was, Yoongi turned on the space heater they had outside before opening the chest they kept out there with a selection of toys for Woojin to play with since he wasn't able to run around the backyard just yet. "What do you want to play with today?" Yoongi asked the toddler.Woojin pointed to a bag of building blocks. "Bock!""Good choice." Yoongi nodded, reaching into the chest to pull out the blocks. Then he set Woojin down with the blocks before sitting next to him. "Let's see how big a tower we can build." Yoongi said, pressing a kiss to the toddler's forehead. Yoongi stacked the blocks one on top of the other while Woojin worked on his own tower, his only getting two blocks high as whenever he would go to put a third on top, it would fall over. Woojin didn't seem to mind, as he laughed every time it did before starting back over. Then he must have gotten bored with his own tiny tower collapsing, because he reached towards Yoongi's and pushed it over. "Hey, that's not very nice." Yoongi feigned a pout as the blocks crashed down, Woojin laughing and clapping. "Look, my blocks are way over there now." Yoongi pointed across the deck to where a couple had skidded out of reach. "What am I gonna do now?" Woojin looked between Yoongi and the blocks a few times before gripping the front of Yoongi's hoodie to stabilize himself as he pulled himself to stand, babbling at his dad while pointing at the blocks. "I'm not the one who pushed the tower over, making them go all the way over there." Yoongi said. "I'm not going over to get them." Yoongi wasn't sure if Woojin actually understood that or not, but the 14-month-old then grabbed Yoongi's hand and took a few hesitant steps towards the blocks, stopping when Yoongi didn't get up to walk him over there like he and Jimin often did in their attempts to get him more comfortable walking. Woojin tugged at Yoongi's hand. "I'm not going to go get them." Yoongi shook his head.Woojin let go of Yoongi's hand and the alpha expected him to drop to his hands and knees to crawl over to the blocks as he always did whenever he or Jimin let go of his hand. But instead, Woojin took a few wobbly steps on his own, causing Yoongi's eyes to widen. The alpha fumbled to pull his phone out and start recording the moment, seeing as he knew Jimin would be devastated if he didn't get to see their pup's first steps, and managed to catch a few steps on video before Woojin resumed crawling. "Look at you go, Woojin!" Yoongi exclaimed as the 14-month-old crawled back over to him with the blocks in tow. "You're gonna be walking properly before we know it!" As Woojin settled in to start stacking blocks again, Yoongi sent Jimin the video.About half an hour later, Yoongi was attempting to soothe Woojin to sleep for his pre-lunch nap, but the 14-month-old was not having it. "Mama!" Woojin cried as Yoongi walked around the room, bouncing him slightly in his arms."I know, you're used to Mama's boobies to go to sleep." Yoongi murmured, adjusting his hold on Woojin as the toddler squirmed. "But Mama's not here right now so you're stuck with me."As if summoned, Jimin burst into the bedroom almost frantically. "I am with you every single second of every single day and the one time I leave you with Daddy is when you decide to take your first steps?" Jimin asked incredulously as he took Woojin from Yoongi's arms, the toddler instantly calming down for his mom. "Why do you hate me?" Woojin's response was to nuzzle against Jimin's shoulder while tugging at the omega's shirt."I'm pretty sure the fact that he just spent the last 10 minutes screaming for you is proof that he doesn't hate you at all." Yoongi said as Jimin settled onto their bed and lifted his shirt up so Woojin could latch on to nurse. "I'm gonna go clean up while he goes to sleep." Jimin nodded and tilted his head for a kiss before Yoongi left the room.