If he could say anything about this situation right now, it would be déjà vu. Like before, just a few weeks after he first made up with Wonwoo, Seungcheol called him out for coffee. That meeting didn’t end so well. So now, only a few days after Wonwoo agreed to give them a shot, he could only assume the same thing would happen. They would end up arguing, and this time, it might not end up with a mere silent duel.

This time Mingyu was prepared to fight. Because this time, Wonwoo said he would try. And if anyone tried to get in between them, he wouldn’t hesitate to beat the out of them. Because they have no right.

Unless, of course, that someone happened to be his omega’s parents, in which case, he would beg for mercy.

Even with all those crazy thoughts running through his head, Mingyu still find it hard to leave the comfort of his car into the cafe. So, like before, he walked around in circles, contemplating whether he should just leave. These things need strategizing, and his initial plan was to start with the two mellowest members of the pack - Hansol and Minghao, not the big boss. He didn’t even tell Wonwoo about this, not wanting to worry the man, but now he wished he did. At least, someone would keep them both in check if one of them starts to threaten the other.

‘ it.’ Mingyu pushed through the entrance straight to the counter. This time, the cafe was not as packed so he could spot the older alpha at once. Seungcheol was flipping the menu, looking relaxed with his small smile and his fallen shoulder. It was as if his defence was all down. Which was a surprise. Mingyu didn’t know how he should approach the man. He thought aggressively, but now that wouldn’t be appropriate.

Walking forward anyway, Seungcheol called to him cheerfully which further confused him. He knew the man hate him for what he did, they all do, so him being kind like this was a shock. It frightened him a bit if he was being honest. It was like the calm before a storm. And he didn’t want to experience the storm. Not a few days into his new start. His and Wonwoo’s relationship was still too brittle to pressure. They might break.

As manners required, they each ordered their coffees and remained friendly until the first sip. And by friendly, they stayed silent. Their last meeting wasn’t pleasant so both couldn’t even try to start small talks. And this, was the longest 5 minutes Mingyu had ever experienced in his life.

‘I heard what happened.’ Finally, Mingyu thought. Truth be told, he wanted this to end as quickly as possible. But since he wasn’t the one inviting, he had been wondering when Seungcheol would finally get to the point.

‘Yeah we’re together. It’s none of your business. ‘ . He didn’t mean to sound offended. He just wanted to put it out there.

‘I mean, that night. What you did to Wonu.’

‘Owh. Yeah. And Wonwoo decided to be with me. So lemme just tell you, mind your own.’ He decided to go with the threatening tone anyway because right now, he really didn’t care. Wonwoo already made up his mind. And the fact that Seungcheol came to talk to him alone only suggest that the man couldn’t put his stupid idea into Wonwoo’s head so he chose to confront him instead.

So really. He shouldn’t and wouldn’t care.

‘I heard you didn’t do anything to him when he was in heat.’

Mingyu almost laughed. Wonwoo told them that much? He knew they were close but he didn’t expect Wonwoo to tell them about his heat because, privacy. Of course, what he told them was a lie anyway so it didn’t count. They both did something during his heat. MORE than something. ‘Wonu told you that?’

‘Seungkwan.’ Of course. Wonwoo would never. He’s too private to spread it around. ‘He was with Hansol when you called to ask about the omega house.’ Rolling his eyes, Mingyu sighed. Now that he thought of it, no wonder his friend was so cranky when he called. He interrupted their date. Slowly nodding his head, Mingyu tapped his fingers on the table while looking around the cafe. He thought he knew where this meeting was going, but he was wrong and now, he was clueless and anxious to be back in his room.

‘And I heard about what you did the night Wonu was… that night.’ Mingyu finally drank his coffee. It was bitter. He really didn’t like to be reminded of that night. It had been haunting him for months since he recalled the events, and he finally had his first good night sleep since then when Wonwoo was with him. And now, he reckoned Seungcheol would try to undo everything and force him to feel guilty. It wouldn’t be pretty. ‘For what it’s worth, I believe you.’

…maybe he misheard that. Though he had been back for a while, he still tend to misinterpret some Korean words…

‘As a fellow alpha who knows how hard it is to resist being near omegas in heat,’ there was a pause where Mingyu figured he was trying to find the right word. The older’s stiff shoulders and formal choice of words was evidence. Maybe it was the frown on Mingyu’s face, or his frozen fingers that gave out his confusion, but he was secretly glad it did. ‘I admire you trying to send Wonu away. Not many can. Especially not with Wonu.’ A loud exhale, ‘So I believe you’re capable of helping him that night without doing anything more.’

Wait. All he could hear from that long as sentence was how hard it is to resist Wonwoo. What the ? Did this alpha just said he’s barely able to control himself around Wonwoo? And the er hangs out with him every single day. ‘What did you say about Wonwoo?’

‘I’m bonded. Chill boy.’ Seungcheol laughed through his nose, ‘I just said something good to you. That’s the only thing that got through your head?’

‘Try me.’ Mingyu continued to provoke the older. He was not used to this. This could be his way of trying to lessen the blow which will come. He knew it was coming. Because in this situation, there’s always a but.

‘You know the thing about claiming him without doing anything else sounds too good to be true right? Nobody’s that virtuous.’ Mingyu smirked at that accusation. Just as he expected. He was about to open his mouth before the other added, ‘Had it been anyone else, I would’ve called bull. It’s weird, I know, but I believe you.’

‘Because I didn’t touch him? Heol. That’s easy. Thought it would take more convincing.’

‘Do you know why those alphas did that to him?’ Mingyu never thought of the reason. After all, it didn’t actually matter why, what mattered was that it happened, and Wonwoo was hurt. But he had to admit, that night was weird; how the alphas were circling him without a bit of conscience. Heck, they even howled like some uncivilized barbarians.

‘He had a burst of pheromones which the alphas mistook as heat. Every alphas around him tried to mate with him.’ Mingyu shifted in his seat. Just hearing this made him uncomfortable. He knew how scared Wonwoo felt that night because he felt it too. The horror, the confusion. The hopelessness. The desperation. The darkness. He felt it too.

‘The doctor said it would be stronger during his actual heat. That’s why he’s terrified of it. But when it happened, you weren’t affected by it. That’s proof enough for me.’

‘If only everyone else were as trusting as you.’ Mingyu tried to mock him. He couldn’t trust anything coming out of Seungcheol’s mouth right now. It was too different from his image. Seungcheol should be the hardest to please, not the easiest. There must be something else.

‘They don’t know how hard it is to be an alpha. They think resisting an omega is as easy as resisting food.’

So that was it. Who would have thought the reason why they would never get along became the one reason Seungcheol was on his side? Feeling his own wall breaking just a little, Mingyu commented,‘That’s not even comparable.’

‘It’s not.’ Both the alpha sighed simultaneously, remembering how hard it was the first time they were near a free omega in heat. Seungcheol, during the time he was a free alpha, and Mingyu, before he had to learn to control himself. And both were thankful of their current situation - the former being bound to his mate, and the latter being a noble with excellent self-restraint in his DNA.

Feeling relaxed enough for a small smile, Mingyu finally looked at the older alpha. He was not showing any sign of hate or aggression at all. He was really, laid-back. Seeing the younger’s expression, Seungcheol gave him a big assuring grin. And out-of-the-blue, Mingyu’s face dropped again. ‘I left him there.’

Seungcheol dropped his too but quickly picked it back up, forcing himself to smile a bittersweet smile. ‘Isn’t it ironic? I left him too. We almost lost control of ourselves so Hansol and I left. We were afraid we would hurt him, and ran away. The only ones who knew what the alphas were capable of doing, ran away to save themselves, and left Wonwoo with the two clueless betas.’

Mingyu couldn’t believe his ears. All these time this alpha in front of him was acting all high and mighty, as if Wonwoo was his when the fact was this was all his fault. That night might not have happened if Seungcheol was brave enough to protect Wonwoo until the end.

‘Yeah. To tell you the whole story, we were all with him. And to be honest, we didn’t leave because we were afraid of hurting him. I left him because I was afraid of him. I was mated, and he still affected me. Hansol was already as drunk as the others. So I admit, I had no right to treat you like . I’m sorry.’

This was unfair. Mingyu knew he should hate this apologetic, pathetic alpha in front of him but he couldn’t. He just couldn’t. All he could feel was frustration, but there was no outlet. He needed to let go. He wanted to scream or curse at the man. But this was not the situation to do so.

‘I almost killed him.’

‘You did what you had to. His circumstance was just special.’

. Why wasn’t Seungcheol triggered by that? Why did he have to be so supportive??

Feeling his face warmed up, Mingyu pulled his cup near his lips and gulped. ‘I didn’t know he’d react like that to a bonding.’

‘Yeah. I know. Nobody would. Heck, those cops threatened to throw us to prison cus they don’t believe us.’ Seungcheol laughed bitterly at the memory, surprising Mingyu who was still in the process of blaming himself. ‘ing cops.’

The noble was shocked to hear that. He knew about the cops coercing Wonwoo to sign the stupid agreement but he never heard about his friends being threatened to be put into jails. He