If You Think the Coffee Sucks, Wait Until You Meet the Owner
Chapter 9: A series of encounters

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Truth be told, Changbin had been worried he wouldn't like Yang Jeongin all that much.

Their conversations over text were promising, but not remarkable. Written communication was weird, because a person was either themselves regardless of format or they weren't, and it was hard to tell who was which until you'd seen them in every light.

The Yang Jeongin he texted with was polite and responsive; dutifully answering questions about his interests and preference, sending back his own proper inquiries, and dropping the occasional laughing face in reaction to a joke or word play. But Changbin couldn't say he showed any specific spark or hint of personality aside from "pleasant". That couldn't be all there was. Bang Chan and Han Jisung wouldn't have fallen so hard and fast for someone who was just "nice". It was vital that Changbin spend time with this omega they were turning their lives inside-out for.

That's where the plan to take Yang Jeongin out shopping came into play. With this one gesture, Changbin could ease some of the burden on them in a way that wouldn't set off Han Jisung's fight response or Bang Chan's what-ever-the-fuck his issue with being taken care of was, all while getting to know Jeongin better. The perfect two-for-one punch. Seo Changbin was a genius.

And it turned out, he needn't have feared. Yang Jeongin was amazing.

He was cute a hell -- very important, applause to him for pulling it off in spades -- and his reactions were absolutely hilarious. Changbin kept wanting to act more and more outrageous just to see what sort of expressions it would pull out of Jeongin.

It also didn’t hurt that Jeongin smelled richly of the two people Changbin had been yearning after for the better part of a year, either.

What had he said to Bang Chan? “At least talk about it with him… I don’t want him to leave and you realize later you missed out on something special.” Really, he was a giant hypocrite, but it was complicated. He’d been down this road before, with heart-felt romantic confessions that fell like sacks of lead on formerly thriving friendships and left awkward misery in their place.

(The friendships in question did eventually recover and he was now old enough and mature enough to be grateful things hadn’t worked out the way he'd planned, but that had been a rough several months for fifteen-year-old Seo Changbin.)

More critically, Changbin had significantly more money than Bang Chan did or could hope to have if he stuck to the path of food-service management. Betas were not supposed to out-earn their alphas. While that didn’t have to matter — who cared if it was betas or alphas or omegas who paid for things? For all his birth pack’s traditional values, no one got too fussed about his omega father financially carrying the pack in the years before his alpha mother made it big — there was a chance it mattered to Bang Chan. It would explain how squirmy he got over Changbin paying for everything. And that was a problem, because Changbin liked financially supporting his lovers; it was one of his favorite things. He wouldn't be happy in one of those "even split" arrangements, nevermind one where he had to keep his money to himself to appease someone's ego. Absolutely not.

Then there was Han Jisung. Changbin didn’t have the best track record with Jisung and he wasn’t entirely sure why. He was pretty good at getting along with people, in his own opinion. Actually, he was phenomenal at it for someone who struggled with volume control and remembering important dates and tracking more than one conversation at a time, but that wasn’t the point, the point was that when he and Han Jisung met for the second time, Changbin failed to get along with him and he still doesn’t know where the misstep happened. He was seventeen when his beta-sire mentioned that little Han Jisung had moved back to Korea and was coming over for dinner, and did Binnie remember the poor boy that stayed with them when he was eleven? Appa, of course Binnie remembers that boy!

Mostly. Kind of.

The Jisung of his memories was — vague. Snapshots of memories rather than a whole person; an unknown kid staring at him from the couch before his beta-sire swept him away to explain that Jisung was going through a hard time and needed Changbin to be a strong and patient big brother to him; helping a sobbing Jisung change the bed-sheets while promising to tell his parents he was the one who’d had the accident; running in mad circles in the back yard until they both collapsed; crying in his room after Jisung left because the thought of him being out there alone hurt so bad. It was strange to remember the intensity of those emotions, but not the specifics of who they centered on.

Changbin was so excited about getting to meet Han Jisung again he couldn't stand it. He had a vision in his mind of how it would go; they would see each other and it would be instant recognition. Han Jisung would cry out "Hyung, it's been so long!" and Changbin would go "At last you're back! Was the trip good? Have you eaten? Sit down, tell me everything." They would talk and talk, and Han Jisung would explain how well he'd been doing and all about his bright future. Changbin would say "ah, if you're staying in Seoul, let me show you around" and Jisung would go "of course, hyung, lets exchange numbers." They would go out sight-seeing and Jisung, ah, he would be a needy little brother, wouldn't he? Jisung didn't have a lot of people to spoil him and look after him, so Changbin would have to be the one to do it. He couldn't wait.

In the end, the Han Jisung that joined them for dinner was a complete stranger. A painfully skinny, newly-presented omega with braces and huge glasses and a cocky attitude. If they'd passed each other on the street, Changbin couldn't have identified him with a gun to his head and the lack of excitement or familiarity in Jisung's reaction suggested the non-recognition was mutual.

Nearly everything out of this Han Jisung's mouth was worrisome. He'd come back to Korea to take his graduation exams, passed all of them with flying colors, and now his brother wanted him to return to Malaysia for university. Was he going back soon? No, he was staying in Seoul. Oh, was there a university here he wanted to attend? No. Oh, so there was a trade he felt drawn to? Also no. Did his brother plan to come back to Korea? No, big brother has a whole life in Malaysia. Oh dear, was Jisung living alone right now? That must be difficult! No, he had someone to stay with. Ah, that's good, who are they? The omega his birth-pack broke up with before the accident. O-oh, I see, were you two close when you were young? Not really. Oh.

Jisung seemed unaware of how concerning all this sounded, his impatience with the topic of himself barely concealed. He did accept Changbin offer to be shown around Seoul, but the long talk into the night never manifested. Jisung holed up in his beta-sire’s office for two hours after dinner and left without another word.

“It’s hard on a person, knowing that someone can destroy their life and never face consequences for it,” was all his appa would say on the subject and Changbin felt stupid as hell. Of course Jisung’s main priority had been talking to the detective that handled his family’s hit-and-run case. Of course that would be more important than reconnecting with an older kid he’d only known for two weeks.

He made a vow to himself to put Jisung’s needs and well-being ahead of whatever wants or expectations he had for their relationship. It was a vow he’d resolutely stuck to through several tours of Seoul, several attempts to integrate Jisung into his friends group, and several failed tries to understand why this wildly brilliant and remarkable boy had no goals for his future. It’d been a massive relief to learn about Jisung’s budding career music and another source of frustration that he wouldn’t let Changbin help him advance it further. Changbin had so many friends that had gone into the idol industry or into music production. He could be such a good resource for Jisung and Jisung hadn't wanted it. He hadn't wanted most of Changbin’s help, regardless of the form it took. It was infuriating, but there was nothing for Changbin to do but keep being there, keep reminding Jisung that no matter what happened, there was one person who wouldn’t let him be alone.

Then Bang Chan came along.

Or rather, then Han Jisung brought Bang Chan along, having found him in the invisible part of his life that existed between their periodic meet-ups.

Changbin was old enough by then that he’d been sent on a few blind dates with alphas by his dam and various uncles and aunties, and those alphas had been… shitheads.

Major shitheads.

Personality wise, they were everything high-class alphas were supposed to be; confident, smooth, forward, but well-mannered. It was in their beliefs that everything fell apart. One had an omega that hadn’t been invited to the date and found it odd when Changbin questioned this, prompting a lecture about how historically, alphas kept their betas and omegas separate outside of mating season. (What sort of old-fashion ideal was that?) Another wanted a beta-mate to make herself more appealing to omegas and casually assured him that his looks were “good enough” for that purpose. (Wow, no.) A third said Changbin better not be one of those betas that expected their alpha’s attention outside of a surge. (He was, actually, so that ended fast.)

Changbin's beta-sire had warned him to be careful about alphas. There was a school of thought that betas weren't equal life partners so much as reproductive accessories, a mindset that was particularly popular among a certain category of wealthy jerk. He'd encouraged Changbin to prioritize making friends with a pack alpha rather than trying to romance one, which was easy enough for someone who wasn't attracted to alphas to say.

Bang Chan, though, was the single-most endearing alpha, if not person, Changbin had ever met. Friendly, humble, and refreshingly easy to talk to, they shared a lot of common interests and insights and clicked almost instantly. Chan had a knack for not letting either their age or dynamic differences limit their closeness, which was Changbin's ideal in any relationship. Manners were manners, of course, he wasn't going to slip into banmal without permission or allow himself to be treated rudely, but he despised when older people acted arrogant and entitled, expecting courtesy without extending it, and he hated making younger people bend over backwards to avoid offending him. He wanted everyone to be comfortable around him and Bang Chan seemed to share this attitude.

Then there was the person Han Jisung became around Bang Chan. Gone was the withdrawn, prickly porcupine Changbin was used to dealing with and in it’s place was a passionate, out-going young man who sought comfort and reassurance, letting himself be doted on without complaint. But only when Chan was the one doing the doting.

A piece of Changbin resented that, but only the smallest piece, because somehow, Bang Chan was a key that unlocked the high gate that had stood between Changbin and Jisung all this time. Within an hour of Bang Chan joining them, Changbin was yelling and breaking out into dances, and Jisung was mimicking him and laughing until he wheezed. It was wonderful and everything he’d always wanted.

Until he started to want more. Until the day he was watching the two of them mess around — Jisung scream-laughing and trying to hide his head while a red-faced Chan pretended to throttle him for something or other, only to steal a kiss instead — and Changbin’s heart turned over so hard it nearly took his whole chest with it. Until they invited him to their new apartment and he spent a beautifully torturous evening sat next to them on a bed soaked in their scent, seeing how easily they tangled into each other while at rest and hurting with how badly he wanted to be a part of it. Thank god he wore his usual privacy perfume, the one mixed to match his body chemistry and conceal certain pheromones, or it would have been a horribly revealing evening.

That left him in the pit he’d been in for months, though. He couldn’t figure out how to confess his crush without setting fire to the precious connection he’d finally built with Jisung and he couldn't figure out how to reconcile the financial disparity, and he especially couldn't tell if they actually shared his interest or if he was telling himself fairy tales again. You'd think their all-natural approach to scent expression would help his situation, but it really didn't.

Now Yang Jeongin had entered the mix and Changbin was feeling more hopeful than ever. If the two of them hadn’t hit it off, it would be a definitive sign that Chan and Jisung were building their pack in a way he couldn't be a part of. He was prepared to put the final nail in that coffin and bury his feelings once and for all. (Or so he told himself. He told himself a lot of things, like “I’ll only do the gym twice this week” and “you’re handsome.”) But he had hit it off with Jeongin! They got along great! Even more wonderfully, Jeongin let himself be pampered without turning it into a huge production, so maybe he’d be willing to convince Bang Chan and Jisung to lean on Changbin a little more, too.

He wished he could’ve kept the good times going the entire trip, but he hadn’t forgotten the struggles that Yang Jeongin was facing nor his sensitive condition. It was probably inevitable that unhappy feelings would surface. There wasn’t much else to do but let them have their space until they’d been drained out.

“There you go,” Changbin said, stroking his thumb over the nape of Jeongin’s neck, “Let it all out. We can talk when you’re done.”

Jeongin whined a protest and scrubbed nose on his shoulder. “Tired of crying.”

“Crying is just your body releasing stress,” Changbin said. He’d found a paper about it when he was digging up some of the studies referenced in one of his Criminal Investigations textbook. It'd stuck in his head and he never missed a chance to share the factoid. “Keeping all that inside is unhealthy. I know it’s tiresome, but try to bear with it.”

Jeongin only sniffed grossly in response to that.

“Don’t be disrespectful.”

That got him a wet laugh. He smiled a little, proud of himself, and moved his hand down to rub Jeongin’s tense shoulder. “When there’s a lot going on, it becomes necessary to swallow your feelings. If you’re sitting around being upset all the time, you can’t get anything done, so you have to push them down just to survive.”

A nod paired with a chagrined grimace told him he was on the right path.

“But the longer that goes on, the harder it is on you. Feelings don’t go away, they just build up inside." He inhaled to fill his lungs and held his arms out in a circle around him, like he was holding the expanded dimensions of his own emotionally-inflated body. “Bigger and bigger,” he wheezed around his held breath, “Until you pop!”

He exhaled hard and deflated. “That’s when you say things you don’t mean. That's when you realize you’ve been enduring problems that could’ve been solved ages ago. All you get is regret.”

Changbin should know. He was a champion feelings-swallower.

“So let it all out.” He spread his hands, smoothing Jeongin’s troubles out across an imaginary surface. “Say everything that’s on your mind, no matter how small. I will listen to all of it. You don’t have to take care of anything else right now.”

Thankfully, this seemed to be what Jeongin needed to hear and, with a series of fresh sobs, he vented about all the things that had been bothering him. Most of them were arguably petty compared to his other problems, but they’d clearly been weighing on him. How stressful the clutter and disorganization of the apartment was: how he had nowhere decent to store his nice clothes and belongings; fears about of his body changing; feeling bored and useless all day when his packmates couldn’t pay attention to him; feeling like a failure about school and his dreams of the future.

It didn't escape Changbin's notice that Jeongin didn't return to the fear of rejection he admitted to earlier, but that was fine. Changbin was patient. If he played his cards right, they'd have many more chances to talk like this.

Unfortunately, after over an hour of shopping and 30 some minutes having a car meltdown, Jeongin's physical needs were in dire straits. That set off another round of frustration tears and since waiting for those to wear down would only worsen the other problem, Changbin gently but firmly ushered Jeongin out of the car and to the nearest public restroom. The pig and bunny stayed safely behind in the back seat, given a break from their comforting duties for the time being.

"Remember," Changbin said while they walked, his hand resting on Jeongin's back, "you have a pack. Whatever happens, you have a place to go and people to look after you. Take your strength from that."

Jeongin nodded without looking up from his feet. He was trying to hide how wet and red his eyes were, but pregnancy had ramped up his scent and no few passerby threw them curious and worried looks. They parted ways at the toilet; Changbin waiting outside while Jeongin went in. He checked his messages to stave off the nagging unease at Jeongin being out of his sight.

Speaking of nagging worry at Jeongin being out of sight; he had several new messages from Chan and Jisungie. He responded to those first, giving them an edited and reassuring version of their trip so far. One of Changbin's contacts was finishing up a project next week and would need a lyricist for the next project, which matched up perfectly with Han Jisung finishing his own new release in a few days. Jisung had also sent back a demo for one of the tracks Changbin gave him nearly three weeks ago and another one of Changbin's contacts was shopping it around the big labels. No news on that front yet, but he was feeling pretty proud of himself. Maybe if being a detective didn't pan out, he'd become a talent manager instead.

Jeongin eventually re-emerged from the bathroom, now bracketed by a pair of older omegas, one auntie and one uncle. Even with the face mask, Jeongin was visibly flustered. Changbin stashed his phone and stepped forward to receive him.

"Oh, is this one of them? What a good appa to wait so close by," the uncle omega said. He was cradling Jeongin's forearm and started to hold it out to Changbin. He could see the moment of hesitation and confusion when the man registered that Changbin's scent wasn't one of the pack marks on Jeongin.

The auntie omega, though, was cheerfully oblivious and continued to urge Jeongin forward.

"There you go, there you go, your alpha is here for you," said the auntie. Not the first time Changbin had had his dynamic mistaken, but at least this was a well-meaning senior who'd probably gone nose-blind.

Jeongin wasted no time in pulling himself free of both of them, including the still-hesitating uncle, and latched onto Changbin of his own accord. Changbin bit back the urge to smile.

"We had a bit of a cry in the bathroom," the auntie was telling Changbin, "It's the hormones, you know, I swear they're worst with the first one. But we're all right now aren't we?"

"Yes, auntie," Jeongin said, bowing with both arms wrapped around Changbin's upper arm, "Thank you for your help."

Changbin bowed as well, first to the uncle and then to the auntie, and spoke in his politest voice. "Thank you for looking after him, sir, madam. I was worried having him so far away."

The uncle stopped wringing his hands and got a sharp sort of look. A young woman arrived to collect the old woman just then, which set off another round of bowing, and soon the uncle's pack came to get him too, preventing whatever lecture he'd had brewing.

"Doing okay?" Changbin asked Jeongin once they'd gotten back on the move. Jeongin was still holding onto his arm and Changbin was puffed up with satisfaction over it. The propriety of leading around someone else's omega was up for debate, but he wasn't that interested in being proper right now. With the two of them pressed together, no one could tell they weren't already pack anyway.

Jeongin clicked his tongue. "I wasn't crying anymore," he said, "It was just the lingering scent."

"Oh no," cooed Changbin, "Is everyone babying you? Poor Jeonginnie, he's such big boy, but he's being treated like a little bitty baby, aigo, it's so sad." He fake sobbed.

Jeongin gave him a very flat smile. "You're not cute."

Changbin cackled. Wrong; he was the most cute.

"What do you want to do? Drive someplace else? Stay here? It's up to you." He thought they should stay and face Jeongin's fear of discovery head on. It did him no good to run from it all the time. But it had to be Jeongin's decision in the end.

"Let's just stay," Jeongin said after a moment of thought. He didn't explain his reasoning and rather then question it, Changbin nodded. They crossed the short distance to the walking street and made their way down the wide, people-studded avenue.

Half-way to their destination, Jeongin said “Oh my god” and veered off toward an Italian pasta place with his nose in the air. He all but plastered himself to the front window. “If I don’t eat here, I’ll die.”

So they ate there, wedged into the most secluded booth the place had to offer, which wasn't saying much.

Changbin pointed to each of the three dishes Jeongin ordered. “Good, good, good. That's what I like to see!”

Jeongin was too busy dragging the nearest plate to himself and inhaling it to respond. That was good, too. Despite his open craving, Jeongin had been embarrassed about ordering so much and kept trying to talk himself into a "more reasonable" portion. Not on Changbin's watch. Breeding omegas ate what and how much they wanted, that was the rule.

The waitress arrived with Changbin's own two orders and thinking of a joke, Changbin tapped the table to get Jeongin's attention. Jeongin looked up at him with a length of pasta trailing from his mouth. Gosh, he was adorable. Bang Chan was so smart to snatch him up. "Look, I'm also eating for two."

Jeongin glanced between the plates. His eyebrows turned suspicious.

Barely able to contain his grin, Changbin said, "This one is for me and this other one is for --"

He rolled up one sleeve and slowly curled his arm up, making the bicep bulge impressively.

He anticipated a sigh or an exclamation of disgust or, best of all, a laugh. He did not anticipate Jeongin running his gaze back and forth over the line of muscles and straining veins, did not anticipate his slim, beautiful eyes going heavy-lidded.

Jeongin sucked in the tail end of his pasta and partially covered his full mouth to say, "You have a good body, hyung."

Changbin went hot all over, a heady mix of pleasure and alarm at being complimented so sincerely.

"Ai," he started and stopped. He took a tissue from the holder and fiddled with it to give his restless hands something to do. Was he smiling too much? It must look really goofy. His face was burning.

Jeongin chewed, swallowed, and shoveled in another mouthful of pasta. "I like it when men have hard, muscular bodies," he said without looking up from his plate. Like he was saying something totally casual and not giving Changbin heart palpitations. "Channie-hyung and Jisungie-hyung have nice muscles too, but I think yours are bigger. It's really impressive."

Changbin threw the tissue down on the table and rubbed the back of his neck instead. He wouldn't call his physique "hard." His arms and shoulders were pretty good, his legs too, but his middle leaned more toward the "soft" side of things. He tried not to let himself take it too seriously. The important part was that when he looked in the mirror, his first impression was "oh, that's me," which hadn't been true for most of his teen years.

"Working out is good for keeping my mind clear," he said rather than acknowledge the compliment, "When I get riled up over something, I go lift weights until I'm too exhausted to be mad anymore."

This time when Jeongin looked him over, there was the edge of dry humor he'd expected earlier. "You get riled up a lot, don't you?"

Changbin gestured up and down his body. "All this is a monument to my rage."

There was the laugh he wanted. Satisfied, Changbin picked up his own chopsticks and spoon. They ate silently for a good while, until Changbin thought of a reason to talk more about his favorite subject. "Have you worked out before?"

Jeongin set aside his cleared-off first plate and reached for the second one. "Yeah, the university had a gym I used to go to. I enjoyed it, but I didn't see any results and people in gyms are weird sometimes, so I stopped."

"Did you have a trainer?" At Jeongin's head shake, Changbin pointed with his spoon. "A trainer is really helpful when you're just starting out. People think they can just sit down at a machine or pick up some weights and do whatever, but every little thing matters. How you stand, how you move, how you hold yourself. There's a real risk of hurting yourself or wasting energy on a routine that isn't meant for your body."

Aside from the occasional "hm-hm" or "hmm?", Jeongin didn't speak up to stop or interrupt him, so Changbin kept going on the benefits of safe and personalized exercise, and eventually wound himself around to his main point. "Actually. I looked it up the other day, and there are quite a few exercises that are good to do during pregnancy. I was thinking, I could find you a trainer or some fitness classes and then once or twice a week, I'll come pick you up and we'll go together. It'll be good for your health."

And it would give Jeongin something to look forward to and a reason to get out of the house regularly. Boredom was basically torture as far as Changbin was concerned, and alleviating it even a little would go a long way to supporting Jeongin's emotional well-being, too.

Jeongin didn't respond right away and Changbin belatedly noticed that the omega had been zoned out at a point on the table for an indeterminate period of time. Jeongin blinked out of it and Changbin expected to get some variation of 'what was that? Come again?' Instead, he said, "Really, you'd do that? Hyung, I'd love to take fitness classes."

"Of course!" Changbin shouted. Someone behind him let out a grumble. Changbin ignored them. They could complain to his face if it was that important. "I'll do some more research when I get home tonight and see what's available. Just send me a reminder if I take too long."

"I'll bother you about it for sure," Jeongin said, "Seriously, hyung, thank you."

Changbin scrunched up his nose in a smile and went back to his meal with renewed excitement. The spaghetti alio e olio here was pretty good and tasted even better with the knowledge that he'd found another way of helping Jeongin and, by extension, Chan and Jisung. When Changbin snagged one of the mussels off his other plate, he found Jeongin watching him with a thoughtful expression.

"Hmm?" Changbin tilted his head inquiringly, then tilted it more and pursed his lips, adding in a little shoulder wiggle. "Hmmmm? Does Jeongin-ah want something from hyungie?"

Jeongin made a face at him. "I was just thinking. You've been close with Channie-hyung and Jisungie-hyung for a while, haven't you?"

"Ah, I guess so. I've known Hannie since we were young, but I only met hyung when they started dating."

Jeongin looked like he was trying to puzzle something out and it was making Changbin wary. There was a not-insignificant chance that Jeongin was going to start wondering "hey, this beta is being really generous for someone my pack isn't courting" and come to conclusions Changbin wasn't ready to be confronted on yet. With the sense of avoiding a minefield, Changbin unlocked his phone and proceeded to rat-out how clingy Chan and Jisung were being with Jeongin out of the house. The resulting four-way text conversation -- not counting the single frowny-face Bang Chan contributed while he was at work -- entertained them throughout the remainder of dinner.

Once Changbin paid, they continued on to the clothing shop. Because of the crying fit and the big meal, Jeongin only managed to try on a couple more outfits before he sort of melted into one of the dressing room armchairs with an "I'm done." It was not as fruitful a shopping trip as Changbin had envisioned, but he got Jeongin to pick out a few more things, including sleep wear, so at least his essentials were covered.

"It's better this way," Jeongin insisted as they trudged back to the car, "Even finding a place for this much --" he gestured at the bags on Changbin's arms "-- is going to be a nightmare."

Changbin decided not to mention he'd also planned to swing by a H&B to discuss skin care options and maybe go look at cribs. He settled for a sniff instead.

"Hyung-ah will have to spoil me more next time."

Changbin stopped dead in his tracks, uncaring of the people forced to veer around him. "Say that again."

Jeongin stopped a few feet a head of him and turned with a giant sigh. Without further prompting, he framed his face with both hands and called out, his accent in full force; "Hyung-ah!"

Changbin squealed. Cute! Too cute! "Aigo, Innie-yah, seducing me like that!" He trotted forward to mime a playful swat at Jeogin's shoulder. "You'll make me blush!"

Jeongin laughed at him and bounced his eyebrows suggestively. "I've barely gotten started."

Such a silly expression had no business making Changbin feel warm again. "Naughty! What trouble are you causing without your alpha around?"

"Hmm, you're right," Jeongin said. He gave Changbin a sideways sort of smile. "I should get him involved."

Heat sizzled up into Changbin's throat.

"Aish," he laughed, half-protesting. He didn't want to discourage actual flirting, but he wasn't sure if it was a good idea to encourage it, either. Had Jeongin picked up something from Bang Chan that Changbin hadn't? How much was he joking? Would Changbin look stupid if he reacted like it was serious? Was he imagining the thread of sweetness in the omega's scent?

Changbin pulled his laden arms around himself like a barrier and sought refuge in a different subject. "How is the apartment hunt going?"

Dishearteningly, it turned out. They'd found a couple of options just inside their price range that offered a second bedroom, but came at the cost of a longer commute, fewer amenities, and a heftier deposit. They were debating whether to get a new place right away or wait a few months until they had more money saved up. Changbin listened with the words "I can help" burning in his mouth.

They were driving back to the apartment when Jeongin asked, "Are you doing anything after this?"

Changbin shrugged. "Homework."

"Let's meet hyung at the coffee shop," Jeongin said, "You can hang with us until closing and Jisungie-hyung will have more time to focus on his music."

"You sure you don't want to go home? You seemed ready to pass out earlier."

"The advantage of dating the manager is I can sleep in the break room if I need to."

Changbin drove them to the coffee shop and found a parking spot down the street. The smells of yeast and sugar, vanilla and chocolate, honey and rosewater filled his nose the moment he stood up out of the car. He glanced over the little corner bakery, making note of the blue trim around the windows and the cute, yellow-puffball style baby chicks on the sign, until his gaze caught on a person standing in the side street between two buildings. The figure, with longish hair and a big grin in a heart-shaped face, was waving at him with both hands. What? Changbin paused in confusion.

It took a beat for his memory to load. Oh! It was that guy!

Some months back, Changbin stopped at a nearby boba tea shop to grab drinks before he picked up Jisung and Chan. The shop was ridiculously crowded and in the process of trying to get to the counter, Changbin lost his footing and bumped into a young man who was leaving, knocking his drink to the ground. Amidst a flurry of mutual bows and apologies, Changbin got the young man, an omega, to wait while he paid for a replacement drink. The omega had a striking appearance even with a face mask on; double-eyelids and dark freckles scattered all around his ears, forehead, and upper cheeks. From the slightly-off pronunciation and occasional blank looks when people addressed him, Changbin got the sense he wasn't a native Korean speaker. It was a shame the boy had been so very shy and uncomfortable with talking or Changbin would've tried to get his number.

None of that shyness showed now. The boy smiled and waved at him like they were long-time friends and oh wow, that face was something else when it was uncovered. Changbin waved back helplessly.

The passenger side door opened to let Jeongin climb out. "Hyung?" He followed Changbin's gaze to the other omega and cocked his head curiously. "A friend of yours?"

"Someone I ran into once," Changbin said. He was sorely tempted to go over and strike up a conversation now that the boy seemed more receptive to interacting, but... priorities. He looked back at the stranger and gestured emphatically at Jeongin and then further down the street. The stranger nodded happily, gave him a thumbs up, and switched to a 'go on, shoo' motion.

"Come on," Changbin said. Jeongin sent over his own wave and joined Changbin at the trunk to get his stuff. Changbin blocked him from picking anything up. "Stop it, stop it, what am I supposed to do if I'm not carrying things?"

By the time they collected all the bags and the two stuffies were tucked safely under Jeongin's crossbody strap, the boba-shop omega was gone. The two of them headed down the block to the coffee shop. They were nearly to the door when it opened and a wave of stale cigarette smoke washed out, proceeding a tall man in a pair of slacks and a button-down that was open to the chest. Jeongin sucked in a sharp breath and Changbin grimaced. Really, some people were so disgusting. He stepped to the side, shuffling Jeongin over a bit more so they could pass without getting too close.

The stinky guy pulled up to a stop in front of them. "Yah, is that Seo Changbin?"

Changbin came to a stop too, startled. Who the hell was this? Beside him, Jeongin exhaled a whimper.

Before Changbin could check on him, the man declared boisterously, "It is! Little Binnie! How're you doing? You remember big brother Chen Yeongsu, do you?"

Changbin did not and it must have shown on his face, because the man put a hand to his chest and pretended to stagger backwards. "And after we used to be so close! Come on, I was your beta-sire's old high school buddy, wasn't I? Good old Detective Seo! Did he finally get that promotion?"

Oh. Really? Changbin blinked, trying to line up this person with his mental image of his appa's various high school friends. He couldn't imagine either his eomma or his omega-appa letting someone like this within a kilometer of their home.

Jeongin took another sharp breath and bowed twice. "Excuse me, I have to go," he wheezed out, "I'll be inside."

"Wait --" Changbin started. Jeongin ignored him and darted around Chen Yeongsu to rush into the coffee shop.

The man watched him go with a narrowed gaze and a pursed mouth. "Kids are so serious about their coffee these days," he said, "Ah, I shouldn't complain, better for me. Hey, you got a minute? Let's catch up."

Changbin felt like he'd gotten whiplash. Who watched a breeding omega run off without a hint of concern? Could he not smell the situation through his own reek?

"My friend is in a delicate state, hyung," Changbin said firmly, "I have to check on him before we can have any conversations. Excuse me."

He tried to side-step the man, only for Chen Yeongsu to move back into his way. Changbin puffed himself up, furious. He didn't care if this guy was older or what his dynamic was, Changbin would not tolerate being bothered like this when he had someone to look after!

"Shit sorry, I'm being a jerk, aren't I?" Chen Yeongsu said, throwing Changbin for a loop in the other direction. He ran a hand over the back of his neck. "Just let me have your number, okay? It'll only take a second. Truth is," -- his voice dropped -- "I'm in some trouble and I've been trying to get a hold of your sire. You're the best chance I've got." He held up his cellphone. "Please?"

Changbin hesitated, finding the whole thing fishy, but his instincts were screaming at him to get to Jeongin. He rattled off his number. Chan Yeongsu's face spread into a grin and he stepped aside to let Changbin through. He had to be an alpha, with behavior like that.

"You're a life-saver, kiddo! Talk to you soon."

Changbin bowed on automatic and hurried past. Once inside the shop, he breathed in, letting the mix of coffee, tea, pastries, and people rinse the taste of old tobacco off to his tongue. He'd snuck a few cigarettes in his time, before he gotten hardcore into fitness, but come on.

He scanned the room. Toward the middle of the shop, Bang Chan stood in his white button-down and brown apron, a broom in one hand and his other hand extended out to block Jeongin who was next to him. They were both staring at a third man. That man was tall and built lean, with long black hair partially caught up in a ponytail, and a sweater slipping off one shoulder. Even in profile, he was kick-in-the-gut level of pretty; lush-lips, pointed chin, strong neck, elegant eyes, slim nose. An absolute knock-out, the benchmark of beta beauty.

As Changbin watched, the man lifted one unfairly graceful hand, pointed it at Bang Chan, and yelled, "You left me for that?!"

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