Chapter Text
There is one universal truth in the universe; there are alphas and there are omegas, and they are a part of one whole.
The moon calls to them both and they run free, together, underneath it.
The first time Bang Chan heard that wishy-washy ‘part of one whole’ crap was at a bonding ceremony, and he found it quite romantic.
And very untrue.
Alphas and omegas are inherently different.
The moon affects them differently. Alphas hunt. Omegas get caught. Alphas are aggressive. Omegas are docile and compliant.
And they are not equals. Not legally.
Omegas don’t have full rights. The official reasoning is that it’s for their own safety. The unpredictable heats and promiscuous nature of the omega would have you believe their virtue is under constant threat. Omegas easily change partners unless bonded, sometimes even several times per day. They’re less prone to diseases, and have a crazy sexual appetite. But they are much more sensitive to scent shifts, liable for the alpha’s mercy.
That’s why an omega’s rights belong to their parents until they’re bonded, or until another alpha is willing to take them under their wing. The only exception to this is if they become a Luna. An omega with no master — a right that needs to be earned .
Alphas on the other hand, don’t need to earn their status in society. It’s there from the moment they present. But so is the struggle for power. It’s a never ending competition to find out who is the smartest. Who is the strongest. Who is fastest. Who beds more omegas.
Alphas typically can’t get along between themselves and have territorial disputes over everything, big or small. Family or pack bonds may tie them — but are never a guarantee. Even when alphas bend under another alpha to form a pack, they’re demoted in title. Only one can be alpha. The rest are betas. Inferior to the leader. The Alpha’s word is last. Even in a pack there’s a constant pull and push between the betas and the alpha on the leadership of a pack — show weakness, and you end up as the beta.
Polite company requires alphas to be disciplined. In control of their emotions. In control of their body. Their short tempers and general disdain toward one another cannot be blatant.
That’s why the Rules exist. To accommodate alphas. They lack control and have short tempers. They have a problem sharing — especially when it comes to omegas. They’re ready to go to war for them. So the better you play by the Rules, the higher your status in society becomes.
“So that’s it? You’re really going?”
“Yup.” Chan pats Felix’s back when he rubs his face on his shirt one last time, before skidding back after Changbin, who's waiting for him by the main hall entrance.
It’s recess, warm early spring, and the entire school went out into the courtyard to enjoy the sun, even though most of them are still wearing their coats.
“Get out of here, man! Feels weird when you’re coming to visit us at school! What is everyone going to think? ” Changbin half-yells at him, like everybody magically forgot who Chan is in the 10 months since his graduation. Their highschool is the only one in town, and although it’s relatively big, since some nearby villages and towns send their kids here, it’s still the type of place where everyone just knows each other. And everybody knew Bang Chan.
If only from the fact that he presented early. Earlier than his peers by far.
It made him an instant celebrity overnight. Senior omegas would be strolling by his classroom to have a look at him, or giggle when he was passing by them in the hall, and all his classmates would want to be him so they can go on a Spring Run.
He was a straight As student. Captain of the swimming team. And also a literary and music genius — thus a romantic at heart. An omega’s wet dream.
“Still your alpha!” Chan reminds.
“Not anymore!” Changbin sing-songs, waving him off. “I’m a free wolf, now.” Felix bumps into him, and immediately interlocks hands with him.
Chan can’t hear what they’re chatting about, but they seem cozy again. Last week he was sure they were going to break up seriously.
Jisung turns back to him, in his best attempt to look supportive despite his frown.
“But a whole year? When are you coming back for a visit?”
“I probably won’t. But fingers crossed they’ll let me off early. I heard that’s possible.”
“Damn, that’s harsh.” Jisung rubs his head, awkward.
Now that Chan thinks about it, they’ve never been apart for that long. Maybe a couple of months, once or twice. Jisung’s the only one who's around his age range in his dad’s pack — so it felt natural that he became a part of Chan’s pack when he formed one. They were always close. From diapers, probably. Feels strange that Chan won’t have him readily available, just a phone call away.
“What about Spring Run?”
Chan rolls his eyes; “You know what I think about that stupid primitive tradition, Jisung.” Now it’s Jisung’s turn to roll his eyes, as if he heard it a million times now. “You know in the city omegas aren’t even required to attend?”
Jisung mouths the last bit of the sentence as if he heard it already a million times, even though Chan is pretty sure he didn’t tell him that before. He only found out recently himself.
Every year, on the last spring full moon, they go on a run.
For alphas it’s optional — but for omegas, it’s mandatory.
It’s what decides their fate.
And they all have to treat it like a game. Spring Festival starts as early as noon, and has a lot of activities for children, food stalls, free drinks, and fireworks — but the main show of the event is the run. Once it grows darker, everybody gathers around the wooden terraces to watch them sound the horn and watch them all run into the forest. Omegas first, typically an hour before the moon is up — and then the alphas.
A game of chase for the alphas, where the prize is shoving their cock into the first pussy they find. A treasure hunt for the omegas — where all the stakes are raised against them, where they have to remain hidden and unmated despite tens of alphas on their tails whose senses are much more heightened due to the moon, where they have to find all the milestones in the correct order before they head to the last landmark — only so they could have the right to govern themselves for the next year. And then, repeat the same thing next year.
Chan did attend. Twice.
He attended once before he knew better — back when he had only presented.
Chan’s parents were a bit iffy about letting him attend, considering his mindset wasn’t exactly adult just yet, but they couldn’t really have much of a say in it. Legally, he was an adult, and he could make his own decisions.
Needless to say he had missed out the next year and the year after that. The next time he attended was last year, as a senior himself, and by then, it was more of a social construct, because everybody else was attending and he didn’t want to be left out. And honestly, it was even worse than he remembered it. Classmates who he considered friends, actively sought him out in the forest to tear him apart, and although the omega he caught was lovely, she made him go four rounds in a row, on the forest floor, with leaves and sand and ants sticking to his butt. Not his best mating.
“Honestly, it’s not as bad as you make it sound. Some omegas actually like getting laid. Me. I’m those omegas. I’m sorry there’s not enough pussy variety here for you — but there’s plenty of dicks to go around and I, for one, would like to enjoy my youth with a fat, juicy one while I can before I’m knocked up.”
“Oh god, every day you sound more and more like—”
“Jisung, are you coming? Recess is almost over.”
Speak of the antichrist, and so shall he appear. In flesh.
The minute his gaze meets Lee Minho’s, they both narrow their eyes — like they’re in a western movie faceoff, about to draw their guns.
It’s been a couple of months since Chan saw him last — but nothing really changed, he’s still wearing his uniform like he’s perpetually in gym class, hoodie underneath his school button up. Nose stuck up high. Another alpha at his disposal, bidding his every whim.
Most unholy.
Serpent of the deep.
The very bane of Chan’s existence upon this earth.
“Yes, hyung!” Jisung’s automatic response comes; “Be right there — So you’re all set to go?”
“Pretty much, yeah.” Chan replies, but doesn’t look back at Jisung until Minho turns to talk to his buddy, and rubs his cheek with his middle finger. Funny how now he’s a senior at highschool and he’s still not below that sort of shit. Chan snorts.
“Just need to pack a bag and I’m all done.”
“Excited?”
“Nervous, mostly.”
He signed in for his Alpha Year still in the last months of highschool and was approved for the next spring right away. He’s pretty much the only alpha out of his graduating class whose heading to serve so early — but he won’t be eligible to move out of town without it, and he’s in a rush to escape this town. No time to waste.
Chan probably read all the information available about AY, twice . Both in the library and online. He visited forums and asked people who had been, just to make sure he knew what to expect. And he feels pretty ready. The way he sees it, it’s going to be a breeze for him.
He never had problems with discipline or control, and he’s pretty good playing nice with other alphas. He’s one of the only alphas who were able to establish a pack still in high-school, while everybody is still in the midst of the post-puberty hormone high. It wasn’t a real , registered pack or anything. More like make-belief. Scenting only. And it felt real enough for them, so that was enough. Everyone knows highschool packs don’t last. So it counts. Especially now that Seungmin has also presented as an Alpha.
He’s going to do well. He just knows it.
“When are you leaving?”
“In two weeks. We’re still on Friday night, don’t worry. And for the annual bonfire, next week — are you still friends with that snake?”
“Yes, I’m still friends with that snake. Snake is my best friend.”
“I’m your best friend.”
“I can have two best friends. Also Changbin is my best friends. And Felix. Not Seungmin, he left chalk marks on my sweater on purpose so he is dead to me. But I have a lot of love to give.”
“If I did stay,” Chan threatens emptily; “And did become your official alpha — my first thing on the agenda is making sure you’re not friends with him.”
“Isn’t that a little primitive of you… deciding who I can be friends with?”
“Ooff,” Chan grins; “Feeding my own words to me? Touche.”
Jisung bows, as if he had performed before a crowd, which makes Chan laugh — that is, until a ball hits him square on the face.
And not just a thump — it feels like an actual punch. He loses his footing, and catches himself right before he stumbles down.
He grabs onto his jaw, groaning. This is going to leave a mark.
Minho catches the ball that bounces off his face.
“It appears I’ve squashed a bug,” He says gently, looking down at Chan smugly. “Nevermind. I think it looked like this before, too.”
Chan spits on the floor, because he feels blood in his mouth, probably because he bit his cheek.
“Are you coming or not? Recess is almost over.”
“Dude, I haven't seen him since last week. Remember what Felix taught you? Have courage and be kind . Like in Cinderella.”
“Kindness is for pussies.” Minho gives Chan a quick once over; “Also cockroaches don’t deserve kindness. They deserve getting squashed.”
He almost throws the ball at him again, but he’s absolutely shit with anything relating to balls so Chan catches it easily.
There’s still no color on his uniform. Green, like Jisung is wearing, is for Omegas. Red, like the alpha standing behind him, is for Alphas. Chan eyes the guy too, for good measure. He looks away, uneasy. Fucker. He’s the one that threw the ball, probably. With Minho’s instruction’s in his ear.
He dribbles it on the floor; “No color yet, huh? You’re almost done with school, too — must be a real embarrassment.”
Jisung is rubbing his eyes, as if they’re both paining him by talking.
“More embarrassing than presenting at 15? I think not.”
“Or maybe you did present, and don’t want anybody to find out. Seems like something that’s pretty on-brand for you. Being the special little snowflake.”
Minho snorts; “That’s rich coming from you, dude. I’m a city boy in a little town’s body, ” He mocks Chan’s voice from some song Chan composed with Changbin a few years back. Chan would be offended and hella embarrassed if this was the first time he used it against him, but Lee Minho made it his life mission to play that track over and over again, to the entire school body.
Changbin didn’t mind, he honestly still thinks the song they made was good — and Minho wasn’t bullying him, he was targeting Chan and Chan’s lyrics, that he wrote right when he was in the middle of his angsty teenager period. It was vile.
But everything about Minho was vile.
He was the reason Chan wanted to get the fuck away from this town.
He just outgrew it.
He’s not going to stay in this musty little town. He’s not going to inherit his dad’s convenience store. He’s not going to knock up an omega fresh out of highschool. His idea of fun is not going to be getting into fistfights with other alphas because somebody looked at his omega all wrong .
He’s not in touch with his wolf, whatever the fuck that means. He never even saw his wolf as a separate entity. He wasn’t a fan of transforming full wolf — and stopped going on full moon runs with his pack back when he was, like, 14, at best. It was never a spiritual experience to him. He doesn’t need to stay in town for the forests or the ambience . He fucking hates it here.
So he knew for a fact, he’s going to thrive in the city. He’s eligible for a scholarship in one of the best university in the city. He’s going to land a good job. And he’s going to be someone . Be someone everywhere else but here.
“Why are you here, even? I bet you missed all the omegas fawning over you. Must be hard to be a narcissist when the attention isn’t on you anymore.” Minho gestures his chin back at the little crowd that’s gathered near the main hall entrance, glancing their way, and trying to appear nonchalant.
“I came to take my diploma,” Chan waves the paper in his head; “Not that it’s any of your business.”
“Your voice is so unpleasant,” Minho shoves his pinky into his ear. “I always forget. When did you say you’re leaving again? Now?”
Chan takes a deep, pained inhale.
“Two weeks, and then you two won’t have to see each other ever , again.” Jisung finally says; “So be civil.”
“I’m super civil. Your Hyung’s a weirdo standing next to highschool in running shorts, with his dick hanging out.”
Chan looks down, just to check — but obviously, nothing is hanging out .
“Perv.”
He decided to jog to school, so he wore shorts. It was sunny today. It really isn’t that deep.
“Should probably call the Committee on you.” He continues; “I’m sure the people at alpha year would love to hear all about your indecent exposure crimes.”
He’ll do it, too, no doubt — Chan learned that the hard way.
Despite the fact that Minho’s voice is pretty gentle, and words can sound sweet and coy when he speaks them — Minho very rarely leaves his promises unkempt. If he says he’ll do it — he’ll do it.
Chan was constantly flabbergasted by how far he can take shit, without mercy.
He stares at him for a long while in silence, and Minho straightens visibly.
He’s not uncomfortable, exactly. Just conscious.
“Well, let’s just call it quits—” Jisung starts, but Chan cuts him off;
“I can’t wait for you to present.” He says and he means it. He’s been dreaming about pressing his face to the damp forest floor. Deep into the mud where he belongs. “Let’s see you working your mouth then.”
Minho moves his weight from one leg to another, and swallows — and Chan smells it, the scent of fresh nectar —of sweet, sweet fear. It’s not every day he can get Minho to squirm — but when he does, it always smells like a juicy pear.
“Are you threatening me…?” Minho’s voice is ridiculously controlled, despite the way he smells.
Chan shrugs. “Just saying. Nobody and nothing is going to save you when I find you.”
Perhaps he’s playing with fire.
“Please,” Minho waves his hand dismissively; “You couldn’t find your brother during Autumn Fest. Thank god, I was there and bought him candy, so he won’t freak out—”
“No, I’ll find you,” He assures him; “I’ll find you in that forest easily. I’ll find you in hell, if I have to. Just to shove your face in the mud.”
“Uh,” Jisung pats Chan; “Slow down there, buddy.”
Minho calls out to his friend, and tells Jisung that he’s hanging out with an uncivilized brute that’s probably going to end up in a Committee Jail for the rest of his life. Then gives him one last sneer at him, like the possibility of Chan finding him is extremely low.
It doesn’t matter if it’s zero. Chan would beat the odds.
.
He’s wrong about breezing through Alpha Year.
Nobody can breeze through Alpha Year. Nothing he had ever read online and no preparatory lectures he attended had prepared him for it.
On paper, Alpha Year is the year alphas prove themselves disciplined. They serve the country, and the country thanks them with a honorary badge in the form of full rights.
Now they can get higher education, move out of their town, form an official pack, start a business. All they have to do is to withhold one year among their alpha peers.
But the sheer reality of it all is that it’s a prison camp. They perform free manual labor for the government, in the most grueling environment, side by side with actual prisoners.
And the purpose of it all was pretty obvious from the moment Chan arrived; misbehave and this is what’s waiting for you.
He was surrounded by strangers with headache-inducing scents, each trying to out-pheromone the other. Every day they were tasked with doing some manual, physical task, like building rail-roads or digging, which was exhausting to the bone. He’s sore for all 12 months.
After the first six months, they can be promoted to Wardens if they suck up to their superior, and get to lord over a small unit of prisoners. Chan found himself sick to his stomach at the taught, and tried to keep a low profile just to get through it.
He didn’t meet any friends. And they were not allowed to form packs. They were constantly pitted against each other for better food and better sleeping quarters, and teams had high turn-over, just so they don’t get used to each other.
He’s allowed to call home only once a week. It’s scheduled and if he misses it due to schedule conflicts, he has to wait for next week.
He misses his mom. He misses her cooking. He misses his pack. He misses Felix’s hugs, and Jisung’s jokes, and Changbin’s competitiveness over literally anything, and Seungmin’s long lectures about some video game they’re all playing that make everybody groan. He’d actually give it all to just go back to that. It made him realize the connection he made with Seungmin and Changbin wasn’t easy — it’s rare .
When he’s back home, it’s spring again, and it feels like time has stood still. His sister is still annoying, his brother is still tiny, his parent’s alpha is still nagging Chan about doing the right thing for the pack, even though Chan didn’t intend to stay and was not going to some tech or business related subject only because he’s asking. His room feels childish, filled with swimming medals and rock band posters. His bed — although bigger than his bunk bed in the tiny room he shared with 3 other guys — feels small. Like for a kid. His pokemon bed sheets don’t help. When he sleeps in it for the first time after returning home, he magically hopes he’s going to return to the guy he was before.
No wonder everybody constantly told him about how AY changed them — He’s completely empty inside, like a hallowed out pod person.
Jisung, Felix, and Seungmin are finishing highschool in a couple of weeks.
To nobody’s surprise, Changbin and Felix broke up, but stayed good friends. They just didn’t work out that way. Felix dated a couple of other guys, and when meeting them all while heading to hang out in the lake, it seemed like Felix was now into Seungmin, who was too busy with school to think about mating. He has to do a lot of extra curricular work for his scholarship now that he’s finished with his finals, and Chan is a bit upset that he wasn't there to help him with that burden.
And also , Lee Minho presented as an omega.
Chan bursts out laughing when Changbin blurts that out, most nonchalantly, like it’s not a big deal.
It's a joke. It has to be.
Changbin isn’t laughing.
He didn’t even present. Technically, that’s something that normally happens with alphas when their scent changes overnight, but nowadays, that’s what they call omegas’ first heat, too. Minho didn’t even get that. He never got his heat, nor did his scent change so his parents took him to a pheromone clinic after he finished school. Apparently, that’s not uncommon in omega children with two alpha parents, like Minho’s.
The unspeakable terror of his highschool life. Scourge of the earth. An omega.
Chan has already been with several omegas — even just before he came to Changbin’s that day — and associating Minho with them feels unnatural .
Omegas had a way about them. A sensuality. An innate urge to mate. They’re always itching for it. Unless bonded they’re desperate for it, and aren’t always looking to actually bond or form a relationship. Just to get off with the nearest dick they find. Alphas take time to recover from intercourse, sharing a scent with a new mate and getting used to their scent takes them a moment. But Chan wasn’t particularly possessive. Back in school he got bored quickly with dating, especially when Minho did everything in his power to sabotage him in some way.
God, he hated his guts.
The kind of hatred that cuts deep. Right past the veins, straight to the bone.
Jisung likes to remind Chan that they had gotten along when he first introduced them. Chan doesn’t remember it — and even if he does remember something vague, it was such a fleeting period, that doesn’t felt real. Minho had spent the better part of the time they were familiar with each other making Chan’s life in school a living, breathing hell.
Whether it’s sabotaging his perfect As score (which he desperately needed for a scholarship in the city), or snitching to the teachers that Chan was making out with the teacher’s assistant. Snotty, spoiled brat.
It was hard to set Chan off, but occasionally Minho would rub him off right over the edge. And retaliation had to be subtle at best; Chan was already considered an adult by law, and Minho a minor. If he punch him straight on his pointy snotty little brat nose, he’d get in trouble with the Committee — And they already got 4 warnings because of Minho on his record.
He might have done some things he wasn’t proud of — but a lot of the time he felt so helpless about the situation, that it was practically bullying .
So when he shows up to the Spring Run that year, right before heading to college, it’s just because he’s petty.
It isn’t a spur of the moment type of thing.
No. From the moment Changbin mentioned him, Chan contemplated it — and it didn’t take him very long to make a decision.
Minho always made this horrible, vindictive side of him to come out. And just this once, he wanted to rain down absolute terror upon the guy.
See him squirming.
His entire body feels tingly with the thought. He has some hesitance there — he hates the Run and what it represents — but the idea of seeing Minho squirming in his thoughts triumphs any doubt.
Spring Fest is the biggest event of the year. Bigger than Yule or Last Harvest.
The big venue is right outside of town, between the forest and the farming fields. There’s a lot of activities for children and adults, a lot of food stalls, and a live local band with some dancing.
Even before he heads to the grounds of the Run, the tension is high with the moon so close to rising. It’s the one night per year, every Alpha gets to do whatever the fuck they want. Beat the crap out of each other with no repercussions and mate with the first omega they catch.
It’s a pheromone-induced, moon craze.
The run itself starts on the amphitheater they built into the drop that leads into the forest.
The omegas are all standing on the lower terrace, and they get a headstart of around an hour or exactly 69 minutes — the alphas are above them, on the balcony, and the rest are either on the terrace above them, or near the entrance.
There’s flowers everywhere, probably a poor attempt to mask all so many alpha scents on a full moon. This is worse than the Common room in the facility he was stationed in Alpha Year, and the scents lingering sickens him to the bone.
Despite it, because of the full moon, his nose and fangs itch, claws ready to come out.
He’s ready for a fight.
All the omegas are dolled up. Wearing their best clothes — or just brilliant white. They wear flower wreathes so they’re even more easily found in the darkness.
Even Jisung.
He wears his one counterfeit supreme shirt, which he wears everywhere that means something. This is a peak effort for Han Jisung.
Whatever progress the city makes about omega rights bears absolutely no meaning in town.
The omegas here don’t find it demeaning that they are forced to be hunted and stripped of rights. They want to be found and get mated — in fact, omegas that are left unmated by dawn get sneered upon. Finding a mate is all an omega should care about.
Chan wants to cover his nose from the stench of pheromones in the air as he wants to above where Jisung is. There’s already two alphas, pushing at each other from being directly behind him, but Chan easily oversteps them.
They seize him up as do everybody in here, even if they know each other since infancy. No alpha friendship can withstand the moon.
The younger ones are still discussing strategies, because they still didn’t learn that once they’re out there, it’s each wolf on his own. Some are hyping up their boyfriends downstairs, or catcalling. Jisung is standing right next to Minho, and another, taller, omega friend. Felix is standing on their right, discussing something animatedly.
Unlike the three of them, who were dressed to impress — Minho is wearing a simple black henley and dark gray sweatpants that have a couple of paint stains on them.
It clicks better now that he sees him down there, next to other omegas.
It made more sense why he was easy friends with Jisung and Felix. It’s Chan that didn’t catch on in time. He remembers how some of the senior alphas were looking after him when he passed by them in the hall, how all he had to do was bat his bright doe eyes at them, and all was forgiven.
Maybe Chan expected it to be another trick.
It’s not.
Actually he prefers it like this.
It’s probably a little bit silly, having to come all the way here just to see for himself if he’s actually an omega.
He stands there for a while, just watching him go.
The pull of the full moon grows stronger. It’s almost time for the omegas to go.
With the scent of pheromones and a new year in his nose — Chan’s head is all foggy with thoughts. He’s not going to do anything, really. Maybe just to spook him, somehow.
The staff of the municipality announce that it’s almost time. The sun has set.
The omegas all get ready.
“Hey, Lee Minho,” He calls out.
Minho turns around and Chan can see the way the color drains his face.
Out there, there's a matter of etiquette and the Alpha-Omega Committee protecting him from harm.
But in there — in the forest, until dawn — everything is fair game.
And Minho knows that.
And Chan did promise to find him if he presents, didn’t he?
“Good luck.” His lips stretch into a grin, albeit one that doesn’t bode well for Minho.
He turns back around hurriedly, as if he didn’t see Chan, finally no brilliant comeback and no smart retort out of his mouth. Clearly alarmed. The spike of fright in his scent is so delicious, Chan feels it in his crotch.
It was worth coming here, just for that.
There’s a surge in his body — like right before they blow the whistle during a swimming competition.
They sound the horn.
The omegas all start running, as does Minho. He turns around right at the tree line, and it’s obvious he’s checking to see if Chan is still looking his way, and he is. Elbow prepped on the banister, face in his hand. He’s definitely waiting for his own horn.
He disappears in the trees with the others.
When they let them out, Chan isn’t in a hurry like the others and he’d rather avoid the initial brawls that happen shortly after the horn.
He can trace Minho’s scent fairly easily. He learned to find it in a crowd, just because he knew Minho won’t let him hook up in peace.
He finds a couple of other omegas simply by stumbling upon them since they didn’t make it very far from the start.
They change the Last landmark and the milestones every year — last time he participated it was an old tree in a forest clearing. Unless you frequent the forest with runs during full moons, it’s hard to find every milestone and still stay undetected.
Chan has no idea what this year’s target is and doesn’t care to know. He picks up when he understands his pace isn’t fast enough.
Somebody else is tracing Minho, following Chan’s steps. Chan has a good look at him as he runs past him, clearly trying to get to him first.
He waits until he thinks the poor guy has the upper hand before slamming him into a tree. He catches him by the hair to have a good look at him.
Just a kid. Probably his first run. He’s half-transformed, shaking from adrenaline.
Chan is glad he didn’t hurt him too much.
His face is scraped and eyebrow’s bleeding. Nothing else seems broken or dislocated. He lets go of him; “Find another scent. This one is mine.”
The guy doesn’t reply, but doesn’t get up either — knowing when to accept defeat.
Alpha wounds heal fast, he’ll be fine.
Chan could’ve done worse for much less.
Chan finds him near a creek, sipping on some water.
For somebody whose so flexible and athletic, Minho has shit stamina, and stops to rest.
He’s a bit red from running, and his heartbeat is rabbiting in Chan’s ears. You could probably hear it miles away.
He clearly knows where he’s going, too. Probably planned ahead. It’s obvious that he doesn’t want to get mated.
He smells a little nervous. After all, it’s his first run.
He flinches when he hears a bird.
Then raises his chin, trying to detect scents in the air — but he’s an omega, so the moon effects him less. His sense are a little bit sharper than usual, but not like Chan’s. And normally, omegas just feel friskier than usual.
Not Minho. Little sociopath.
Minho bends down back underneath a mossy creek bank, and sits on a log and washes his nape.
Chan wishes he could get closer, but he doesn’t want to risk being seen or smelled. Not yet.
Minho takes off the tiny fanny pack he had on his torso, and takes out a little yogurt.
Chan bites his lip, trying not to laugh.
Is he seriously eating in the middle of the run?
Should he just jump him? What is he going to do when he does? He didn’t actually think this through — nor did he consider he’d find him an hour or two into the Run.
Minho never notices him, and continues running once he eats and rests.
On his second break, Chan almost chants for him to start moving, because he smells another Alpha on their tracks.
He waits until Minho disappears, before eliminating the next alpha, too.
The third one Chan knows.
He’s a bit older.
A senior from school. He obviously harbored some crush on Minho, because he was clearly looking for him specifically.
So it’s a little awkward that Chan has to slam his face against a rock to finish the fight.
For his defense, the senior kicked him first. Nearly broke his leg.
When Chan finds him again, he’s at his fourth milestone, looking stupidly smug about his accomplishments — so he decides to see if he’ll actually find all 6 of them. He does.
He makes it to the finish line in 6 hours and 23 minutes, breaking the record of another omega from a decade ago.
A pretty ample feat, especially for a first time omega.
Chan isn’t sure why he feels like he really did something there. Minho didn’t even notice him around. Nobody did. Maybe that one senior did — but it’s not like he’s going to go around and tell everybody that Chan fucked him up in the forest.
But somehow this is enough.
He doesn’t actually meet Minho for the rest of his stay, and when summer starts, he heads to college with his conscious clear and his heart content.
.
The city is exactly as he imaged it.
A jungle of cement and glass.
Not a tree in sight.
Coffee shops and bars and restaurants and karaoke places, opened all night. The city is alive just like it is on TV shows or movies. There’s non-stop traffic, and crowded sidewalks that make it hard to move. The campus of his university is so big, it almost feels like a small town, too.
It takes him around a month or so to realize, he’s waiting for stress and abuse that won’t come— he gets along well with everybody, just like he did in school. He’s good with people. He can find an approach with every person he meets.
(Not Lee Minho, but you can argue Lee Minho isn’t a person , so there’s that.)
Everything is horribly easy.
His classes are a piece of cake.
He loves his major.
His professors think he’s a genius.
He’s known to be a fairly good lay, too, and omegas on campus are pretty bullshit free. His cock is always warm. Nobody is looking to pop out pups.
Sure, there’s perpetual hostility and competitiveness among alphas — and yes, it is a bit harder than highschool. Scent wars over fucking chairs in the auditurium. Needless ego games. Tiny square dorm room to call a territory. And no support over then his mom calling to check up on him.
But after his Alpha Year, it feels relatively docile.
During Alpha Year, the others would pick a scapegoat, usually the weakest alpha in the bunch, and pick on him until he broke down or quit. Sometimes they’d bully somebody they just didn’t like. Beat him up during recess and he’d be forced to say that he fell down the stairs, because if they know there was a fight, everybody involved will be kicked out. The Committee won’t care who was at fault. Disciplined Alphas control themselves. Undisciplined — don’t.
At university, it was different. Intellectual — stepping on each other’s toes just enough to get the other into a fit of rage. And promptly get expelled because Alphas who lack control don’t belong in higher education. Not everybody could survive the mental burden of that — especially ones that had come from athletic scholarships or backgrounds. But if there was somebody who could, it’s Chan.
Years of withstanding Lee Minho taught him so much. He practically had all the tools to deal with university before he even started.
He’s doing it. Living the dream — and yet…
He’s not sure if it’s because of the trauma Alpha Year left in him, or perhaps something else.
He can’t really put his finger on it.
It almost always feels like he’s missing something.
He realizes that one day while doing the laundry under the dorms. He’s all alone there — and it’s too easy. Like somebody turned off the difficulty.
.
Chan comes back for Spring Break with no intention of participating in the Spring Run.
Perhaps there’s truth in that saying. Too Much of a Good Thing .
He spent almost an entire year in some omega’s ass. He’s bored.
He’s seeing someone. An alpha. They’re in that stage where they’re already exclusive, but not yet dating. Chan isn’t sure if he needs to pop the question, first. For it to be official. Or if it has to be some magical requirement that comes into place. She keeps him on a tight leash, and Chan likes her. He needs somebody strong-headed.
She made him promise he won’t participate, since they both agreed that it’s barbaric to expect omegas still go through with it in contemporary times. It’s a bit of a test. A test of trust. Maybe after that they can be dating.
Eitherway, he came back for his highschool pack.
He missed them so much it’s almost comforting having their scents up his nose again.
They’re having a meal on Friday evening.
He’s buying.
He’s the only one who was able to get out of their town, after all, and his part-time job pays pretty well.
“He’s only working at the flower shop because he thinks that’s where all the omegas hang out.” Seungmin explains when Chan wonders out loud why Changbin is even working.
He doesn’t need to.
His parents are among the richest people in town, but since he had 6 omega sisters who all escaped to the city the moment they had the chance to do so, his parents established a trust-fund for Changbin that has only one condition. He has to stay in town.
It’s a pretty cruel legal bind.
If Chan’s parents did that to him, he’d flip — but Changbin seems fine with it. He never wanted to head to Alpha Year. He still has no idea what exactly he wants to do with his life, and all the time in the world to figure it out.
“No, I’m not.” Changbin claims, looking sullen. “Unless your mom is in a frisky mood.” He ducks when Seungmin tries to hit him. “I’m going to try going for Minho this year in the fest, anyway.” Changbin says, grabbing a large chunk of meat from the grill.
Chan is positive it’s another Minho.
Can’t be Lee Minho .
It’s a common enough name.
He wants to ask, but Jisung cuts in, mouth half-full; “You and the rest of town. I’m surprised this guy isn’t first in line to get his chance.” He points a thumb at Seungmin, and Seungmin obviously kicks him under the table, because Jisung yelps and glares at him.
Chan looks between them now, obviously left out.
He’d be mad, but he wasn’t around for a whole year, so it’s to be expected.
There’s really so much they can tell them on the phone.
He looks toward Felix. He told him in secret last year that he was crushing on Seungmin and when Felix wants something, he usually gets it.
But he never mentioned them getting together.
Now he’s sitting there in silence, eating and refusing to meet Chan’s gaze — wait, no, they’re all refusing to meet Chan’s gaze, now that he looks around the table.
“What?” He asks, half-laughing. “Am I missing something?”
“Seungmin tried to hook up with Minho.” Jisung fills Chan in, finally. “Like, 2 months ago. It’s all very sad.”
“It’s not sad . Minho is just a gigantic douche. Chan knows that better than the rest of us.” Seungmin nearly stabs his own meat with the chopsticks.
“Minho? Don’t tell me Minho from High School?”
Jisung nods. Felix is the only one decent enough to look up and seem apologetic, even if it’s mid-chew.
It is that Minho.
He takes a moment to consider it. He vaguely understands they’re all friends now. He also remembers Minho standing between Felix and Jisung during the last Spring Run. He can smell him on them faintly. Odd how he even recognized it after a whole year.
Jisung had been friends with Minho back in highschool, but Chan always thought he was only friends with him only because of Chan. So he could spread the nastiest gossip, and know where Chan is hanging out so he can go there too. He worked tirelessly to make Chan’s life hell, he’ll give him that. Gotta love persistence. But it’s not that big of a town they live in, and Minho is obviously around their age, so it’s shouldn’t be that much of a shocker.
They’ve just finished highschool, too, so — Seungmin is free to pursue Minho. As does Changbin.
Not a big deal.
They’re not exactly a pack anymore — not with Chan far away for a second year in a row, back for only a couple days for the holidays. They hadn’t really discussed being a pack, either; both Seungmin and Changbin are alphas, so this would mean they would need to bend under Chan, which might be a bit too much to ask when they’re in their prime. They deserve to have a chance to build their own packs, before they settle.
It’s nice to know they still hang out all together, though.
“Me and him have gotten really close lately.” Changbin says that more quietly, digging at his food.
“Soon you’ll learn he’s treacherous and flippant. But good luck to you. I’m sitting this year out. Just like I did last. These runs are dumb and mean and you participating in it is also dumb. It’s not mandatory for Alphas.” Seungmin takes a haughty little inhale having said that, as if he was preparing this little speech for awhile. Chan can’t believe his own highschool pack would be fighting over Minho, of all people. It’s like somebody transported him into a parallel universe.
Jisung rolls his eyes back so hard at this, as if they’ve already had this conversation forty times, and maybe they did — sounds like they did.
When Changbin finally looks up, he meets Chan’s gaze above the grill, cringes and looks down hurriedly.
Chan wonders what sort of look he was wearing on his face. He’s not sure.
“There’s no way you’re going to find him anyway.” Felix waves his head. “He’s fully intending to go for a Luna, this year, too. He dragged Jeongin by the ear to scope out the forest.”
“Again? I went with him last night. He’s so anal about it — there’s no way he’ll make it. There’s like at least 6 guys who are going after him, that I know for sure. Juyeon, probably. He works with him. He used to run Track in school.”
So did Chan.
Juyeon has zero long term stamina. It’s been a few years, too, so he’s probably out of shape.
“There’s also that older guy that owns the gym on main street.”
Chan liked that gym. Real shame the owner has bad taste.
Minho is way too young for him.
“Don’t forget Mr. Tall-dark-and-handsome over there.” Seungmin gestures with his head to the left. “What’s his name again? He’s from Minho’s former pack.”
The only other table at the restaurant is a couple; an alpha and omega.
He glances at their table, as if he senses that Chan is staring.
He’s a few years older.
Chan doesn’t recognize him, but he has a sleazy, toothy smile.
No man should have so many teeth in his mouth.
“Man, I hope he’ll leave us some alphas.” Jisung makes a face; “I was looking forward to getting laid finally.”
“You’ll always have the purple dildo Minho and Hyunjin gave you for your birthday—” Seungmin is smirking at his remark, and now Jisung hits him underneath the table.
.
He was going to come to stay for the start of the run just to cheer on his boys.
Changbin promised Jisung and Felix that if nobody chases after them and he can’t find Minho, he will volunteer as a tribute. Jisung declined and promised to bite off Changbin’s dick if it came anywhere near him.
Chan wanted to see that in play.
Next week was already the start of his term, so since he wasn’t going to participate, he was going to have a movie night with his siblings.
He sees him at the Spring Fest, hours before the Run.
They’re lighting up the bonfire.
There’s music and food. Tons of people. All the town gets together for this— and the celebration continues until dawn. It’s mostly for the children and the bonded folks — Chan remembers it fondly as a kid. The only night per year he was allowed to stay up as long as he wanted.
Minho’s hair is ash-blond, and his lips are full and pink.
He filled out nicely since last year — on his thighs, mostly. And his bottom.
Chan has to walk around to get a better look — then hates himself for doing it and pretends he was just going to get a beer fill-in.
He refuses to approach. Nothing good will ever go out of interacting with him.
He doesn’t even want to.
There’s already a train of alphas walking after him, asking him questions, trying to hold onto his arm when they lean to say something in his ear.
He looks like they’re bothering him — and is constantly trying to get away. Bored.
He managed to avoid Minho for his entire vacation, though perhaps there was some degree of luck to it. Every time the others implied Chan should invite Minho, Chan didn’t budge. If he wanted to come, he could just show his face. He wasn’t going to specifically extend an invitation to him.
Every time they went to Minho’s, he refused to tag along, too, unless Minho specifically went out of his way to invite Chan. And no, Jisung throwing out a ‘ he did ask about you ’ isn’t going to be enough. He wanted a personal invitation.
Ego games.
Just like at University. He’s gotten pretty good at it.
It’s funny that he has to play them with an omega, but Minho was never really an omega in his head.
Oddly enough, he doesn’t feel any form of animosity towards him now. It’s been too long. And he felt like he fulfilled his anger last year. He sure showed him, then! Helping him get to the finish line without ever showing his face!
Their eyes finally meet when Chan’s taking another swing out of his beer cup.
He keeps his gaze for a second, when another alpha is trying to speak to him over the music, so bursts out laughing.
Now, he’s amused all of the sudden, isn’t he?
Chan can bet his entire school year tuition Minho didn’t hear a single word the alpha said.
Stayed a manipulative little brat, after all.
Chan doesn’t care.
The omegas and alphas are called out to come get ready for the Run on the speaker system.
Chan takes a shot with a couple of old classmates at the bar. Liquid luck for them.
He decides to plate some sweet snacks off the tables, so he can feed Changbin before the run. He gets hungry when he’s nervous.
He’s grabbing the last cinnamon bun when somebody else takes it right out of his hand.
“Not participating this year?” Minho changed clothes. Sports wear, this year, too.
Every alpha relies on something else, some have good hearing, some have good sight. Minho wore forest boots, so he’ll be relatively quiet on the dry leaves, and a dark green shirt. He’ll be practically invisible in the forest — so whoever doesn’t know his scent, won’t be able to find him unless he stumbles right upon him.
“No.” Chan’s answer is more careful than he expected, calculated. His back is tense and straight.
He takes a bite and nods, taking a couple of steps to the left, as he examines all the foods there while he chews. “Ah, right. You have a mate.”
“No, I don’t.” He finds himself saying, and it’s true, she’s not. Not yet. They haven’t been together long enough to be official. He just blurted that out. He probably shouldn’t have.
“So either I heard wrong, which never happened before,” He takes another bite; “Or, you’re the type of guy that says he’s not actually dating when asked.” He makes a disgusted face; “Yikes.”
“Why would I be going around telling people I’m not dating?”
“Fuck knows, maybe you think you’re going to get laid if the other party hears you’re single.”
Chan snorts; “So let me get this straight. You think I want to fuck you?”
“I guess.” Minho looks a bit pensive, and takes a deep, dramatic sigh, then puts the bitten off cinnamon bun into his plate. “Well, I’m off now. Hope this year isn’t as weird as last year.”
“Why was last year weird?” He knows he was baited to ask that the moment it’s out of his mouth, because Minho is putting a swirly straw into his cup.
He makes a dismissive noise, like it’s nothing; “Some weirdo mother-fucker kept hiding in the bushes behind me the entire time.”
They both narrow their eyes at each other.
“But you’re right. That doesn’t make any sense.” He slurps loudly on his drink as he walks away.
Chan looks after him even when he disappears in the crowd that heads to see the run starting off.
.
“Dude?” Changbin’s voice sounds surprised when Chan shoves the plate at his chest, following Minho as he takes his place between Jisung and Felix. “I thought you’re not participating?”
“I’m just — I need to let out some steam.”
“But your mate—”
“She’s not my mate.”
“Right.” Changbin swallows a whole macaroon.
Felix notices him and waves, a bit awkward and weirded out. Jisung and Minho both turn to look up to see who he’s waving at.
Minho doesn’t seem as surprised as Jisung. Jisung says something, but Chan can’t really hear it over the chatter around them, but it makes Felix laugh.
A younger omega standing next to them notices the exchange, and sees Chan on the balcony next to Changbin, so he raises his voice and asks Chan whose he’s going to chase after.
“Don’t know yet.” Chan answers, trying to be polite. He can’t exactly say he’s not going anybody. And he doesn’t want to blatantly say he’s going after Minho, either.
She rushes off to her friends, giggling.
“Damn, I knew it.” Changbin says; “You gave me a scary look over dinner the other day.”
“I don’t know what you mean.”
“You know exactly what I mean.” Changbin takes a long inhale; “Weirdo. Is this because he put laxatives in your drink that one time in senior year?”
“ No .” Chan rubs his head; “Maybe. I don’t know. I’m not going after him.” He says and continues to bore a hole into Minho’s neck.
“So, uh, what’s the plan? Claim him or kill him?” Changbin says with full mouth; “You’re fucking scaring me, man.”
“I’m not going to touch him.” Chan finally looks away. “I just need to let off some steam, anyway. It’s been a long while since I went on a proper full moon run.”
Changbin swallows, staring at him, as if trying to analyze what’s going through Chan’s head. Chan has no idea, either. It’s just a whim, really.
“Ugh, wasn’t there any cinnamon buns left? You know I love cinnamon buns.”
“Nope. All gone.”
He ate the one Minho had bitten out of.
.
Minho keeps low to the ground, and takes off his shoes — he’s even quieter like that. He’s careful and quiet in the woods, often stopping when he hears too many noises. It was hard for Chan to keep up.
But Chan knew his scent pretty well.
Well enough to be able to detect him, at least. Or maybe it’s just the cinnamon bun. Chan isn’t sure.
After a couple of hours out in the woods, of seemingly going in circles, he dips in the water, to further confuse Alphas that went after him. Unless you had his scent or knew it by heart, there was very little you could do to actually find him in the forest.
Too smart for his own good.
The last milestone is a boulder this year, deep in the forest, closer to the mountain range. Minho reaches it first, beating his former record by an hour and 47 minutes. Truly unprecedented. At least in their town.
Chan wasn’t there to see him get there this time.
Jisung and Changbin tell him, when they come to visit him in the hospital.
Changbin got only a scratch on his chin — and a new omega girlfriend. Jisung isn’t very fond of the alpha he mated with (although the guy did like him), so his mom gets his rights for another year.
“Back to cleaning the floors in the dental clinic for another year. She could at least get me to participate in her teeth surgeries once in a while or something. I’m basically a janitor with extra steps at this point, and not an actual assistant.”
“You could — you know? Try getting a certification or something?” Changbin suggests.
“Fuck no. Every time somebody opens their mouth wide I get the shivers. It’s like looking down at the abyss.”
Chan can’t really laugh, not with his fractured jaw, but he does so anyway.
He also has 4 broken ribs. Multiple claw wounds, some blood loss. The whole shebang.
He remembers visiting his cousin once, after he got scuffed up badly in a Spring Run. He was in shit mood. Didn’t get the omega and also got beaten up. Chan always thought he’d be like him, if he’d get into the hospital. He’s a pretty sore loser.
But he doesn’t consider this as a loss. He wasn’t actually going to actually claim Minho. He was just making sure nobody else did. And nobody did. So mission accomplished.
He also needs to get into better shape. Clearly his muscles had wasted away in the city. There’s no forests there, beside the reserve. And archaic traditions such as Spring Runs are frowned upon — Alphas who participate in them are considered brutish. Old-fashioned.
Despite that, he’s not the only Alpha that comes back late to the term, with his face all black and blue.
The alpha he’s seeing takes one look at his face, and blocks his phone.
Chan doesn’t blame her. It was extremely shitty of him. He wishes he could say sorry properly, maybe explain. She doesn’t want to hear anything from him, either way, and Chan never tries to patch things up.
Maybe that’s for the best.