“Himchannie––” Jongup leaned back against the sofa, reaching an arm out blindly behind him in the general direction of his mate. “Come here,” he whined, turning his head so that his nose pressed into the pillow behind him. Himchan paused and turned, a smile on his face. He strode forward and took Jongup’s hand. His touch melted the tension from Jongup’s body.

“I’ll just be a minute,” he said softly, squeezing Jongup’s hand. Reluctant to let go, Jongup held fast, tugging Himchan towards him. Himchan sighed, still smiling at him, and bent over so that he was at Jongup’s eye level. Jongup pulled his hand up to rest it against his cheek.

“What is it?” Himchan asked as Jongup nuzzled into his palm. He breathed in deeply, holding onto the man’s scent for as long as he could, before responding.

“Sit with me.”

“I will, Uppie. I’ll be right back, I promise.”

“Feels better when you’re here,” Jongup murmured into Himchan’s stomach. He curled his knees up, too, fitting himself around him while keeping his head in his lap. It was as if Jongup was a large cat trying to snuggle with its owner.

“Are you not feeling well?” Himchan frowned and reached down to run his fingers through Jongup’s hair. He turned Jongup’s head to face upward and pressed his palm to his forehead. “You don’t feel too warm,” he said. As soon as his hand lifted, Jongup twisted to bury his head in the soft material of Himchan’s knit sweater, arms wrapped around his torso to hold him as close as he possibly could. There seemed to be something… off about him.

“Jongup.” Himchan’s face and voice grew concerned, and Jongup peeked up at him, still holding tight. “What is it, Jonguppie? What’s wrong?” He brushed Jongup’s bangs away from his eyes, and was hugged tighter as result.

“Nothing. I don’t know,” Jongup replied, voice muffled to near incomprehensibility by Himchan’s sweater. “Just feels weird without you. ‘M sleepy.” With that he closed his eyes again, and burrowed into the fabric, letting out a contented sigh once he was settled. Then Himchan was becoming a little worried. Since Jongup wasn’t looking at him anymore, he let a frown take over his face, and he rubbed Jongup’s back. A small, rumbling sound—almost like a purr—came from Jongup’s chest, and something like a soft whine from his throat. What was up with him?

“Are you achy? It can’t be your preheat, right? You just had one last month,” Himchan wondered out loud. Jongup shook his head into Himchan’s stomach, but didn’t say anything, and Himchan sighed. God, how was going to tell him that he needed to leave for the weekend now? “You must be coming down with something,” he said. Jongup didn’t say anything, just snuggling closer as his breaths evened out and slowed. Himchan would tell him after his nap.

“Hey, you gonna be ready to leave in the morning?” Youngjae asked as he swept past where Himchan held Jongup on the sofa. He had rearranged so that he was laying, body stretched out, over the cushions, with Jongup resting between his legs, head on his chest and one hand curled around his shirt as he slept. Himchan hesitated.

“Yeah, I’ll finish packing later,” he said.

Youngjae slipped into the kitchen. “Himchan,” he called, “it’s already ten. Better get moving. If you aren’t in the car by eight, I’m not driving you.”

“I know,” Himchan said with a sigh, trying to keep his voice down as not to wake Jongup. A minute later, Youngjae emerged with a glass of water in hand, and sat down in the chair on the other side of the coffee table. He took a sip of his drink and then rose an eyebrow at Himchan, nodding his head in Jongup’s direction as he swallowed.

“Not too happy you’re leaving?” he asked.

Himchan winced and bit his lip, reaching up to play with Jongup’s hair. “I actually didn’t get the chance to tell him, yet.”

“Why?”

“First of all, it’s not my fault that this came out of nowhere, only about––” he paused to check his watch “––two hours ago.”

“And?”

“Second of all, as soon as I sat down next to him he was on top of me, practically asleep.”

Youngjae snorted. “How very Jongup of him.” His laugh died, however, when he saw the way Himchan continued to worry his lower lip as he gazed down at the man in his lap. “What’s wrong?” he asked, eyes scanning Jongup instinctively to check for any signs that something might be abnormal. Jongup was sleeping soundly, breathing deeply and rising ever so slightly every time Himchan breathed in.

“I think he might be coming down with something,” Himchan said, looking up as he continued to pet Jongup’s hair.

Youngjae squinted. “You think he’s sick? He seemed fine earlier. A little tired, maybe, but that’s not exceptionally out of character.”

“He just seemed really uncomfortable before he fell asleep,” Himchan explained. “As soon as I walked past him, he wouldn’t let me leave. I’m worried something’s wrong.”

“Did you ask him if he was okay?”

“He didn’t seem to know, either,” Himchan said with a frown. He shifted a little bit so that Jongup’s ribs wouldn’t dig into his stomach. He slipped his arms beneath Jongup’s, and gently dragged him up until his chin was over Himchan’s shoulder, and he wrapped his arms around his back. “Just said he felt weird without me.”

Youngjae pursed his lips. “Is he maybe starting his preheat?” he suggested.

Himchan shook his head. “That can’t be it, he just finished a week ago.”

“I mean, it’s not unlikely that he might be sick,” Youngjae said with a shrug. He finished off his water and stood up. “You’d better tell him when he wakes up. I’m sure he’d be upset if he woke up alone without warning.” He paused. “Unless you think you can get out of visiting you mother’s house for two days.”

“No way that’s happening,” Himchan said with a chuckle. “They’ll never forgive me if I don’t go meet my new niece.”

Youngjae returned to the kitchen to put his empty glass in the sink. “Better get him to bed, then. I’m sure he’ll want extra snuggles before you leave,” he teased. It was no secret how affectionate Jongup could be with Himchan. See: his position on the couch, right then. As Youngjae appeared back in the living room, he stopped beside the couch, expression turning serious. “Though, if something is wrong with him,” he said, “let us know. We’ll take care of him,” he promised.

Himchan smiled at him, still hugging Jongup to his chest tightly. “I know you will, Jae. It’s only one weekend. It’ll be fine.”

As much as Jongup loved Junhong, his hugs were nothing compared to Himchan’s. His scent was different; more citrusy than his, a little minty. It was nice, and he appreciated that Junhong was trying to help him, but it did nothing to soothe the constant, hollow ache in his chest. As an unmated beta and his life-long best friend, Junhong would ordinarily be the best choice for comfort when he was feeling down, but Jongup didn’t feel any better curled up next to him, knees drawn to his chest as he leaned on his shoulder, watching him play video games and adamantly refusing to join him, saying he felt too tired. And he was exhausted, despite having done nothing but sit inside all day listening to the storms pass by outside, one after another, rolling thunder rumbling closer and closer every few minutes. Junhong used to deal with Jongup’s moody preheats all the time before Himchan had… taken over. He would do his best to massage and ease the aches in his back and abdomen, and reluctantly let Jongup pull himself away to hide in his room while riddled by the full heat, almost always spending the entire week in his wolf form and leaving Junhong and the others to worry. The effects on his health that spending so many heats alone had wrought on him had been bad, sometimes even causing him to fall ill for weeks afterward. Junhong had offered time and time again to help him, as he had during Jongup’s very first heat––which had been filled with confusion and panic on both ends, as they had been the only ones home at the time and sixteen––, but the answer had always been nothing more than a closed door and some quiet whimpering after that. Junhong had been beyond ecstatic when he had witnessed a very disheveled Himchan digging around for condoms in Daehyun’s night table. Well, more towards what that had implied. They all had been.

When Jongup began to cry, however, Junhong started to panic. It was late at night, around eleven, and the house was quiet. Junhong’s ears twitched when a faint sniffle came from beside him, and he dropped the notebook he had been jotting down lines in. Jongup had curled up beside Junhong under the covers of his bed a little while ago, claiming he was tired and wanted to go to sleep early. Junhong hadn’t noticed him wake up; last he’d checked Jongup was warm, cozy, and breathing deeply. But now, suddenly, Jongup was cold and tense, his breaths shuttering their way out of him.

“Hey, hey,” Junhong said quietly, putting a hand on Jongup’s shoulder and peering over to get a look at his face. In the dim lighting, he could barely see his expression. “What is it? What’s wrong?” He leaned back against the headboard and gathered Jongup in his arms, but as soon as Jongup got a whiff of him he was shoving him back and scrambling away.

“Jonguppie…” Junhong let himself be pushed back, and Jongup stumbled off the bed, retreating to the corner of the room and drawing his knees up to his chest. Shocked at his strange behavior, Junhong only stared at him for a few moments, not knowing what to do. Where was this coming from all of a sudden? He slowly rose from the bed and stepped carefully to the door.

“I’m going to get Youngjae, okay? He can help you feel better. Just, stay here.” Junhong pulled the door shut behind him, hand lingering on the knob, and teeth worrying his lower lip as he contemplated whether or not it was okay to leave Jongup alone when he seemed so distressed. Figuring it was his best shot, he quickly made for Youngjae’s room.

Youngjae was still awake, luckily, though caught in a state of dressing himself for bed. Junhong stuttered out apologies and covered his eyes with his hand, Youngjae’s claims that it was alright doing nothing to ease the slight panic that came with catching his pack-leader half- and off-guard. After pulling a large t-shirt over his head, Youngjae called him back in. He patted the side of his bed to invite him to sit, but Junhong shook his head and stayed in the doorway. “Something’s wrong with Jongup-hyung,” he said.

Youngjae frowned. “What is it?”

“Well, you know how he was acting weird earlier, being all clingy and moody?”

Youngjae nodded.

“Well, he finally fell asleep just an hour or so ago, and suddenly he woke up crying. I tried to talk to him and I asked what was wrong but he––he ran away from me,” Junhong finished, bewildered.

“Ran away from you how?”

Junhong scratched his head. “I don’t know, he just pushed me away when I tried to hold him. He was curled up in a ball in the corner when I left. And I know you said that Himchan hyung said he thought he might be sick, but he’s not,” he added quickly.

“You shouldn’t have left him alone, Junhonggie,” Youngjae said. “I’m not sure what’s going on, but if he’s so unstable we shouldn’t let him isolate himself.” He stood up from the bed and made for the door, Junhong shuffling backwards to let him out. “Come on. Your room, right?”

They jogged back down the hall until they reached Junhong’s door, and Youngjae knocked softly. “Jongup?” he called. There was no response. “Jonguppie? It’s Youngjae. Can I come in?”

When no reply came yet again, Youngjae turned to Junhong, his eyes narrowed in a way that Junhong recognized as what he liked to refer to as “Youngjae’s-analyzing-gaze”.

“Maybe he fell back asleep?” he suggested.

Youngjae ignored him, electing instead to tilt his head and sniff the air carefully. “That’s weird,” he said quietly after a minute. “I don’t smell anything strange.”

“I didn’t either,” Junhong said. “But I figured because, you know,” he gestured at Youngjae, “the whole alpha-sense-of-smell thing… though actually, maybe Daehyun…” he trailed off. They all knew Daehyun had the best nose in the house.

Youngjae knocked on the door one last time. “Jonguppie, I’m going to come in now,” he called, and then slowly turned the knob and pushed the door open. “Are you––whoa!” He leapt back as a light gray wolf darted out of the room the second the door was open wide enough.

“Jongup!” he called after it, knowing it was him. “,” Youngjae swore. “Okay, yeah, something is very wrong,” he said, running a hand through his hair before taking off after Jongup.

Youngjae was at a loss. He felt like a fish out of water, completely out of his element as he stared at the lump in Himchan’s bed. Could Jongup really be this upset over his mate leaving for the weekend? Was it because Himchan hadn’t told him until he caught him packing his things? But that would be so unlike Jongup. It wasn’t as if Jongup had never been able to handle being away from his mate for a day or so. Plus, Himchan had only been gone for half a day so far. Maybe it was completely unrelated? Youngjae knew that Jongup would seek out Himchan’s scent when he was distressed, that was a natural reflex for mated omegas.

But if not Himchan’s departure and absence, what?

“Jonguppie, can I come in?” he asked, rapping softly on the open door. Junhong stood behind him, nervously wringing his fingers. There was no response from Jongup, but he hadn’t really been expecting one. He left the light off when he entered, figuring that the dark would be more comfortable for Jongup. He had created a sort of nest of pillows and blankets around himself, curled up and crouched in the middle, by the headboard.

“What’s wrong, Jonguppie?” Youngjae softened his voice as he came closer, motioning for Junhong to stay in the doorway. “We want to help you, but we can’t if you don’t tell us what’s going on.” He stopped beside the foot of the bed, and Jongup peered back at him. His ears laid low on his head, and he didn’t move, only following Youngjae with his eyes. His shoulders were hunched and tensed, as if he was preparing to defend himself from something.

Youngjae decided it would be best to stay at the foot of the bed. “Can you shift back so that we can talk?” he tried. He kept his body loose, vulnerable, as non-threatening as he could, but his physicality seemed to do nothing to put the light gray wolf before him at ease. Jongup had backed himself up against the headboard as much as he could, and he watched Youngjae carefully. He didn’t show any signs of obeying the request.

“Hey, what’s going on?”

Junhong jumped suddenly when Yongguk stopped next to him in the doorway.

“What are you doing up, hyung?” Junhong asked, embarrassed that he hadn’t heard him approaching.

“I was just getting some water,” Yongguk answered distractedly, poking his head into the room and glancing around. “What are you guys doing? Why are you in here? Himchan’s not––”

Junhong nudged him and pointed to the bed.

Yongguk squinted into the darkness, the only light in the room being that which leaked in from the hallway. “Is that Jongup in there?”

“The one and only. He ran away from me and turned Himchan’s bed into a nest for himself,” Junhong explained with a defeated shrug.

“Is he just… missing him? He hasn’t even been gone a day.”

“Well, no doubt, but I’ve got a feeling there’s something else going on, too.” Junhong spoke quietly, not wishing to overrun Youngjae’s soft voice as he spoke to Yongguk.

“What makes you think so?”

Junhong bit his lip, recalling what had happened just a little earlier. “He was just sleeping in my bed while I was writing stuff, but then he woke up and started crying, and I tried to––just to hug him, but he pushed me away and hid in the corner, like he was scared of me.” He gestured uselessly with his hands, back and forth, as he spoke.

“Maybe he had a nightmare?”

Junhong blinked. “…that would make sense, actually,” he said. “But even if that is it, we need to get him human again. He’s acting really hostile, even to Youngjae.”

“Maybe I could try talking to him?” Yongguk put a hand on Junhong’s shoulder, gently pushing him out of the way. Youngjae turned as he stepped inside, Junhong remaining behind them. Yongguk walked past Youngjae, who made no move to stop him, and stood beside the nightstand, still a good few feet separating him from the wolf on the bed. The two regarded each other for a silent moment. Jongup’s gaze was cold; guarded.

“Jongup, are you okay?”

His only response was careful eyes flicking about his form, no doubt having better vision in the dark than he did. Jongup’s ears were still laid back, nearly flat against his head, and from where he stood, Yongguk could just make out the way the fur between his shoulder blades stood up, hackled. That was what really struck him that something was truly wrong. Jongup never behaved in such a hostile manner.

“Did you have a nightmare?” Yongguk kept his voice low, so that he wouldn’t startle the wolf before him. He could sense that its heart was racing, though it made no sound. “Can I sit?” he asked.

Of course Jongup didn’t answer him, but he stepped forward anyway, after another few seconds of unproductive staring. He glanced back up at Youngjae, who gave him a nod of encouragement, and he carefully seated himself on the very edge of the mattress. He offered Jongup what he hoped came off as a reassuring smile, but the wolf only backed further away from him.

“Jonguppie,” Yongguk said softly, noting the way the wolf’s ears twitched in response. “What’s wrong? Do you miss Himchannie?”

The wolf released a low whine, and its ears flicked further down.

“He’ll be back in just a couple days, Uppie,” Yongguk said. “I’m not sure why you’re so upset this time, but you know we’re all here for you, right?” He reached out slowly to pet the wolf’s head, but as he got closer, a soft growl rolled from Jongup’s throat, and he stopped, eyes wide. “Hey, it’s just me, Jongup.” Instead he made a fist and offered it for the wolf to sniff, but it didn’t move to do so, and Yongguk dropped his hand, significantly more concerned than he had been before.

“Hey––” Youngjae called out, but Yongguk stopped him.

“No, it’s alright,” he said, not taking his eyes off of Jongup. “I think he’s just frightened.”

“Of what?”

Instead of telling Youngjae that he didn’t know, Yongguk decided to remain silent, figuring Youngjae would understand. And he did, judging by the sigh that filled the room.

“It’s okay,” Yongguk murmured, reaching out again. He faltered when another growl began to rise up at him, but didn’t stop, still whispering reassurances. When his hand finally made contact with the soft fur on the wolf’s head, the growling lightened, though nothing of its physique changed. Jongup was still tense as a drawn string, and his heart still raced wildly in his ribcage. Yongguk waited, keeping his hand still, until the growls dropped off into a low hum, and then gently smoothed his fingers over Jongup’s head, around his ear and to the side of his neck. Jongup seemed to relax, if only just slightly, at the motion, his head tilting and ears rising a bit. He seemed conflicted, Yongguk thought, observing his body language. Jongup’s eyes darted from him to Youngjae to Junhong and then back again, gaze imploring as though he wished to leap into Yongguk’s arms, but something was holding him back from doing so. Was it that the others were there? But that had never stopped him from being affectionate before.

“Is he okay?”

Jongup flinched when Junhong spoke up, and Yongguk didn’t raise the volume of his voice when he responded.

“I think so,” he said, continuing to the fur beneath his fingers soothingly as he turned his head to face the other two. “He’s just… jumpy.”

“I’ll say,” Youngjae muttered. Jongup huffed, and Yongguk shot him a look.

“What?” Youngjae came closer, arms folded across his chest, to stand beside Yongguk. “I think it would be best if we just left him for a while,” he suggested. “I don’t think he’s too keen on having company.”

Yongguk sighed, knowing Youngjae might be right. “Maybe not.”

“We should get Daehyun,” Junhong suggested, still hanging back. “It could be an omega thing,” he said with a shrug, worries eased as he watched Yongguk pet Jongup.

“That’s true,” Yongguk said.

“What do you mean?” Youngjae asked. “He’s been an omega since he was sixteen. You’d think that if this was a ‘thing’ we’d have seen it happen before. And to Dae, too.”

Junhong shrugged again. “I don’t know, I’m not an omega, it was just a suggestion, jeez.”

“It would be worth a try,” Yongguk said. “Who knows? He might be able to help. And, if not, I think a bit of alone time for him wouldn’t hurt. Right, Jongup?”

All three looked at the wolf, still tensed and still.

Youngjae sighed again. “Yes, I suppose.”

When Junhong shook Daehyun awake, he blindly reached out and grabbed the beta, pulling him to his chest and rolling over.

“Hey.” Junhong squirmed, breaking free of his grip and standing again. Daehyun just rolled over the other direction, and Junhong rolled his eyes. “Daehyun-hyung. Get up.”

“No.”

“Daehyunnie.”

“Go away, Junhong. ‘M sleeping.”

Junhong contemplated his options briefly before settling on the simplest one, and then stooped over to scoop Daehyun into his arms. Daehyun immediately resisted, kicking his legs and feet wildly but weakly. Junhong held fast and shushed him quickly.

“Hyung, stop. We need your help,” he said, carrying the sleepy omega into the hallway.

“Help? With what?” Daehyun rubbed his eyes, blinking in the bright light. “But it’s so late,” he whined.

“It’s only twelve in the morning,” Junhong hissed. “We think something’s wrong with Jonguppie-hyung. He’s barricaded himself on Himchan-hyung’s bed and he won’t turn back into a human.”

Daehyun was silent for a moment, processing the information slowly as he leaned his head against Junhong’s chest, listening for his heartbeat. “Was he… why’s he in Himchan’s room?”

Junhong deposited Daehyun on the floor in front of said hyung’s room, and he shuffled inside. Youngjae was leaning against the wall to the far side of the bed, and Yongguk was sitting with his legs crossed in the middle of the bed, before a light gray wolf. Daehyun stopped, standing in the middle of the room, and sniffed. Something was off, but he couldn’t quite get ahold of it with his human nose, despite it’s unnatural strength. He reached for his sleep shirt immediately, instincts telling him to shift so that he could identify the smells clearly. Nobody questioned him as he stripped until he was , clothes thrown in a pile at his feet.

“Shoo,” he said as he stepped out of his pants, tripping a bit when he tried to kick them off. He flicked his hand in the direction of the door.

Youngjae raised an eyebrow at him incredulously. “Shoo?” he parroted. “As in, get out?”

Daehyun huffed. “Yes, as in get out,” he said. “All of you. I have some sniffing to do, and I’d like to do that in private, thank you very much.”

“You’re asking us to give you privacy after you’ve just gotten in front of us without a care in the world?”

“Yes. Also, your noses aren’t as good as an omega’s anyway, so,” he shrugged his shoulders, “you would only be a hindrance. Now, shoo .” Daehyun got to his knees on the floor and shifted, leaving a fluffy, brown wolf standing in his place. He stood, staring at the other three imploringly. Junhong pivoted on his heel and left, Youngjae rolling his eyes before following, hot on his tail. Daehyun nudged Yongguk’s leg, and the beta sighed, giving Jongup’s ears one last pet before he rose from the bed and left the room. Daehyun would thank him later for closing the door.

In the darkness, Jongup relaxed. Daehyun could tell as soon as he leapt onto the bed. They could both see very well in the dark with their wolf eyes, and Daehyun watched as Jongup’s ears rose softly and his shoulders relaxed as he laid down, stretching himself out more comfortably among the mass of pillows.

Why did Himchan have so many goddamn pillows?

Daehyun huffed and slowly stepped into the makeshift sort of den, surprised when Jongup showed no signs of resistance to his entrance. He sat himself down beside him easily, and Jongup welcomed him passively––a very Jongup thing to do––when his snout sought out his ears. Still he seemed uncomfortable as he allowed him to nose about, but Daehyun didn’t think it was his presence making him feel that way. He sniffed across Jongup’s ears and neck, his face and his shoulders. There was something lacing Jongup’s natural scent that was new. It wasn’t flowery but it was sweet, though not overpoweringly slow. Like oranges and cloves.

Daehyun’s nose poked across Jongup’s body, prodding around his ribs, stomach, back––all over, before he pulled back. Jongup gave a small yip and nudged him with his own nose, like he was asking for an answer. Daehyun didn’t like to say he was ever really sure of anything, and the smell deep within the core of Jongup’s wasn’t anything he had ever smelled himself before, but he was fairly certain he understood what was troubling Jongup. Granted, his knowledge came from stories he’d heard and books he’d read, but still.

Daehyun sat back on his haunches and shifted into his human form so that he could speak.

“Jonguppie, can you shift back?” he asked, petting the other omega’s stomach. Jongup gave a sort of soft groan that Daehyun chuckled at. “Come on, turn back into a human, Uppie. I wanna talk to you.” He nuzzled his face against Jongup’s, laughing again when his cheek was . “You suddenly seem better,” he observed, voice muffled as he buried his nose in Jongup’s silvery fur. He pulled back when he felt the body under him begin to shift, and sat down with his legs crossed before him.

Jongup pushed himself up, arms still a bit shaky as he stared ahead and waited for his eyes to adjust.

“Care to tell me what happened?” Daehyun asked. Jongup jumped and reached out, not sure where exactly Daehyun was in the dark. One of his palms connected with his bare knee and the other his chest. He dropped his hands, but Daehyun caught them in his own.

“I’m sorry,” Jongup said, hanging his head. “I don’t––I just don’t understand. I feel so terrible but I don’t understand why.” He shook his head and sighed. “At first I thought I must have just been sick, because I did feel ill, really, but then I just… I-I got so sad,” he said. Daehyun squeezed his hands to urge him to continue.

“But it’s a weird kind of sad, because I don’t know what I’m sad about. It feels like a part of me is missing, and I just can’t find it. Like I’m unable to be myself without him here.”

“Without Himchan,” Daehyun said, and Jongup nodded.

“Yeah, without Himchan,” he said softly. “But the last couple of times he’s left I’ve been totally fine! I don’t understand why it’s so different, now.”

“Can you tell me what exactly about it is so different?” Daehyun asked.

Jongup sighed and leaned forward to rest his head against Daehyun’s shoulder. His forehead felt somehow both hot and cold at the same time, and Daehyun let go of one of his hands to pet his hair.

“Like… it’s like I just feel uncomfortable and wrong without his scent around me. Like I’m starving or parched or both, if that makes sense. It doesn’t, does it?”

Daehyun shook his head. “Not really, no.”

“I have chills,” Jongup said. “Feels like a fever, but not in the ill kind of way.” He bit his lip, and Daehyun let him collect his thoughts.

“My muscles are all achy, too. And I get dizzy when I move too fast. A-and I feel so exhausted, I think if I tried to stand up right now I’d fall over.” Jongup sighed and pressed his face into Daehyun’s neck. “It’s like my body is angry at me.”

Daehyun laughed shortly and petted Jongup’s hair. “But you haven’t been sick or anything?” he asked, superbly confused then.

Jongup shook his head, hair brushing Daehyun’s skin lightly. “No, just… just lonely. Cold. I can’t––I can’t be without him right now. I don’t know why, but I just can’t,” he cut himself off with a sniffle, and Daehyun tucked him into his chest, shushing him as he began to cry.

“Shh, it’s okay. It’s alright, Jonguppie.”

The man in his arms didn’t respond, only holding him tighter.

“I think I might know what’s wrong.”

Jongup hiccuped once, and then looked up. “Really hyung? Do you know what to do? Can you fix it? Please?”

“Well… it’s just a hunch, really, but if I’m right, then I don’t think it’s the kind of thing that needs any fixing, Uppie.”

Jongup sniffled again and took a deep breath to try and calm himself down. “What do you mean?”

“Okay, somebody needs to call Himchan. Like, right now,” Daehyun said, bursting into Junhong’s room, where he, Youngjae, and Yongguk had all congregated to wait for him. Except, it was morning, Daehyun hadn’t come back, he had slept on Himchan’s bed with Jongup in his arms, and everyone was asleep in a pile on Junhong’s floor.

“Hyung, you’re still ,” Junhong slurred out, trying to sit up until he realized that he couldn’t with Youngjae on top of him. He gave up and flopped back down.

“I know, you punk, now wake those two up while I find my pants.”

“Didn’t you take them off in Himchan’s room?”

Daehyun’s mouth twitched. “I want clean ones.”

“Whatever you say, hyung.” Junhong yawned like a newly awakened beast, flashing his canines and stretching his tongue out.

Daehyun’s face twisted at the display. “Ugh,” he muttered to himself as he left. “Gross betas-with-alpha-tendencies,” he complained, as if Junhong’s biological abnormalities were a common case among their kind. (They weren’t.)

Daehyun had only just finished dressing himself when Junhong comes knocking.

“Hyung, you didn’t tell us what to say to Himchan-hyung once we called him,” he said, holding his cellphone out.

Daehyun blinked. “Oh.” He took the phone from Junhong’s hand and pressed it to his ear.

“Hello?”

“Himchan-hyung! Hi!”

“Daehyun, it is nearly two in the morning. Why did you make Junnie call me? Better be important,” Himchan grumbled, his voice washed out over the phone. “I just laid down. My entire body is screaming for rest.”

“Um,” Daehyun covered the speaker and motioned for Junhong––who was lingering curiously in the doorway––to shoo, only speaking again once the door was shut behind him.

“So, I know you just left, but…” he trailed off, not entirely sure how to tell Himchan that he thought his mate had a few buns in the oven.

“When was the last time you and Jongup had ?” he blurted awkwardly.

There was a pause, and Daehyun could practically see Himchan’s face scrunch up, brows drawing together. When he finally got a response, it was hesitant. “… what brought this about so early in the morning? Had a bad dream about it?”

“Oh, my god, no!” Daehyun shouted, then immediately slapped a hand over his mouth. “Hyung,” he hissed. “Just tell me.”

Himchan sighed, obviously still disoriented. “I don’t know, whenever his last heat was, I don’t remember. I’m too sleepy for memory recall.”

“Okay, so a week ago.”

“… sure.” Himchan yawned loudly into the receiver, and Daehyun winced.

That sounded about right.

“You need to come back. As soon as possible,” he said. There was another beat of silence.

“What? Why? And why did you ask me about ? Oh, god, why did I answer that without questioning you further? Daehyun, I just want to sleep.”

Daehyun his lips and sat down on the edge of his bed. “I know, hyung, I’m sorry. But I think this counts as an emergency.”

That had Himchan at attention. “What do you mean? What happened? Is Jongup okay?” Suddenly his questions tripled in speed, and Daehyun wasn’t sure which one to answer first. He decided to go with the most positive one first.

“Jongup’s fine, hyung. It’s not a bad emergency.”

Himchan growled. “Daehyun-ah, the word emergency tends to have negative connotations,” he ground out.

Daehyun sighed. “I would really prefer to tell you this in person, but I have a feeling you won’t cool down and come home until I do, am I right?”

“You are.”

“Did you use protection?”

“What––why are we back to the questions?”

“Just answer it!”

Daehyun could hear the grind of Himchan’s jaw. Or was he just imagining it?

“Fine,” Himchan said, voice quiet as if he was afraid someone might overhear. “No, we did not. Now explain yourself.”

“I think it worked,” Daehyun rushed.

“You think it worked,” Himchan repeated. Then: “you think what worked? Daehyun, I have never been more confused in my life. Please just––”

“I’m about seventy percent sure you impregnated Jongup. Oh my God, that was the worst possible wording I could have chosen––”

“Have someone come pick me up at the airport in four hours,” Himchan cut him off, and the line went dead. Daehyun stared at the phone in his hand for a minute, taking his time to process everything.

“I can’t believe I said that.”

“Yeah, me neither.” The door cracked open to reveal Junhong, still outside, and Daehyun leapt to his feet.

“I told you to shoo, you little cretin––”

“I was just waiting to get my phone back,” Junhong defended, holding his hands up in front of himself. “And now I have questions, too,” he added sheepishly.