hey ^^

That afternoon, after leaving Hyuna with her grandparents who came to visit them over the weekend, Donghae went to the mayor's office – a very respected omega woman and part of the omegas' rights struggle – to help make the posters and participate in another protest because in recent months some people in the government have started a campaign against the law that guaranteed free medication to alphas and omegas.

No one understood the real reason behind it, but Donghae had a slight mistrust that all this was purely dangerous prejudice, since some betas were against the relationships between an alpha and an omega of the same or ethnic differences. If this persecution continued, many people would be at risk.

- I can’t believe you got so many posters. – the mayor said with a tone of pride in her voice – The police are out there to protect us, so don’t worry.

- I always worry. – Donghae said and Melissa laughed – What?

- You've never bothered before, Lee Donghae. You're just saying this because you have a daughter to take care of.

Donghae laughed.

- Yes, but there are still many omegas that don’t understand what we are doing. Don’t understand or don’t want to understand. And if this campaign against free medicines works out, we know who's going to have to work harder to pay for it.

Melissa sighed and nodded to Donghae. The medicines were terribly expensive and some betas mobilized against the alphas and omegas who received the medicines. It was a very dangerous thing and the government was really discussing taking out something that was everyone's right. And everyone involved in that protest hoped that everything would turn out right at least.

And while finishing the last poster, Donghae saw the door being opened and he was speechless as soon as he saw Kyuhyun enter the mayor's office. He tried to act as if nothing was happening, as Melissa nudged his waist and made a comment, and waved at the alpha that approached and said:

- I'm glad I wasn’t late. I didn’t want to get here and have to run after you guys.

- Well, it would be a good and dangerous run. – Melissa said and took the poster with Donghae – Let’s go?

Donghae nodded and picked up a poster while Kyuhyun took another. The other participants in the protest also took up their posters and left the mayor's office, hoping that everything would work out – they knew that the police (having alphas like most) were on the side of the protesters. However, no one could control the omegas and betas that threw some tomatoes as they began to walk the streets.

- You should behave like decent omegas!

- You should stay at home, because that is your duty!

- I disgust you!

- You filthy omegas!

Donghae ignored every comment and realized that Kyuhyun was too close as if to protect him. He wasn’t going to refuse help, but he was worried about Melissa who was already dirty with paint, tomatoes and other things being thrown at the protesters. She wasn’t afraid of anything at all, but she was four months pregnant and her husband didn’t want her to be there – but nothing was going to stop Melissa.

- Stay close to Mel, Kyu. – Donghae said – She is pregnant and someone can hit her belly.

Kyuhyun nodded, but wanted to stay close to Donghae too. But seeing that the omega, while being offended and having tomatoes tossed on his clothing and hair, was quiet, the alpha stayed close to Melissa and snarled as soon as a beta tried to approach to rip her clothes.

The protest was intense and the police almost couldn’t hold those who were against the demonstration. Many protesters were injured and many gave up even before they reached the meeting place. Donghae, who was now close to Melissa, hugged his friend who started crying as she saw how many people were able to finish that walk.

- Don’t cry, Mel. – Donghae said as he her back – Don’t cry.

- W-we... We did everything, Hae. Why doesn’t anyone see this?

Donghae bit the corner of his mouth and let Melissa cry on his shoulder. Kyuhyun, worried about the omega, called her husband and asked him to go get her. The mayor wanted everyone to see how dangerous things were, but she never imagined it would end like that. Anyway, she would attend that meeting and show how many people were there to fight for their rights.

- That's right, you filthy omega! – someone shouted as approached – Cry because those tears don’t mean anything!

Melissa sniffed and saw that Donghae narrowed his eyes and approached the alpha that had insulted the protesters from the start. She even tried to hold her friend by the arm, but he managed to pull away and ask:

- Do you have any idea why we're here?

- I bet it's for something shameless as you always stand for.

Donghae gritted his teeth and stared at the alpha that smiled and crossed his arms as he stared at him. Then the brown-haired man took a deep breath and said:

- We're here because there's a bunch of betas that wants to take our medicine. We are of the secondary genre as they say, but we aren’t in smaller numbers as they think. You are entitled to the free medicine and people want to take it away from you.

And so the alpha stopped smiling.

- That... That's a lie.

- No. It's not a lie. – Donghae walked away and climbed into a box – I want you all to listen to me because I'm going to tell the truth as I always did. If we lose our right to the free medicine, our children will suffer. I have a three year old daughter and I will only know if she is omega or alpha after her teenage years, but maybe she doesn’t reach the age of ten because she can be without this medicine that is important to me and her. – and he did his best not to cry at that moment – We are here to fight for our rights. We are here to fight for your rights as well. What we are doing is securing something that is ours by right. Do we work and go through the most humiliating situations and in the end what we receive? – and so Donghae took a deep breath – You threw tomatoes, rocks and all kinds of food or objects at us, but we still remain strong because we want a just society for ourselves and our children. I want my daughter to grow up in a world where she will not need to humiliate herself every day to receive nothing. I want her and my godson, as well as all of the new generation, to have a better life. We are here to fight for children because they can continue our work. And you can throw as many tomatoes as you want. We'll never stop fighting.

With that, Donghae got out of the box and saw that many were applauding. He didn’t want any of it, actually. He just wanted to leave that message because he knew a good part would listen – even if the other ignored him and said that he was an unashamed omega that only wanted the first alpha to mate. But Donghae's consciousness was quiet at the moment. He did everything he could and saw his friends doing all they could to fight that day. If it worked, that was just one more step on a path to make sure everyone had a happy life.

And after putting Melissa in her husband's car, Donghae waved and thought it best to leave because at that moment he couldn’t do anything. And he was so stunned that he finally forgot Kyuhyun, who didn’t forget him.

- It was a nice speech.

- What? – Donghae looked at Kyuhyun and smiled – Oh... Thank you. I was just so angry that I wanted to fight.

Kyuhyun laughed.

- Typical omega that wants to protect the offspring.

And Donghae laughed too.

- That may be, but I didn’t enjoy seeing Melissa that way. She didn’t think our protest would end like this. In fact, I don’t think anyone imagined it. – he sighed – I need to take a shower and go home. My parents and my daughter will be shocked if they see me like this.

- Not that your parents haven’t seen you like this.

- Kyuhyun... – they laughed – But you're right. Anyway, I just want to get home and hug my daughter.

They kept walking back to the mayor's office, and Kyuhyun asked:

- Are you still living on the farm, or are you back here?

- I'm living here. Why?

Donghae wished Kyuhyun to ask if they could go out for lunch or coffee. And that's exactly what the alpha did:

- I wanted to know if you'd like to go out with me tomorrow. We don’t have to do anything extravagant; I just want to go out with you if that's okay.

Donghae smiled and said:

- I'd love to go out with you, Kyuhyun. I can leave Hyuna with Jungsu or my parents if they don’t leave today.

Kyuhyun smiled widely and Donghae smelled that scent of an aroused alpha. He knew that it was past time to give his heart a chance and wanted to see how things would happen between them. And for the moment, they both hoped that everything would work out.

- I'm going to need your address because I want to get you.

- It's alright. Let's go in and I'll give you my address after I take a shower.

- Or I can also take you home.

Donghae chuckled and said:

- No one is stopping you.

And Kyuhyun was even happier because he didn’t really believe that the chance to have a relationship with Donghae was slowly emerging. But he was a patient alpha and would wait for the omega as long as possible.

~~~
Later...

After taking a shower and putting all the dirty clothes in a bag, Donghae got into Kyuhyun's car and gave the address to the alpha he drove while talking to the omega about the latest events in the three years that have passed. They didn’t talk about each other's personal life, but Donghae realized that Kyuhyun had a relationship because there was a ring mark on his finger.

And after being fooled by Eunhyuk for so long, Donghae didn’t want anything with another liar alpha.

- Daddy!

They heard Hyuna's voice as Kyuhyun stopped the car in front of a beautiful, simple house. The omega smiled and waved at his daughter who played happily in the yard while her grandmother watched her. And as she saw Kyuhyun there, Mrs. Lee approached the car (taking care that her granddaughter didn’t run down the street) and said:

- Oh, well... I didn’t think I'd see you again Kyuhyun-ssi.

- I'm glad to see you again, Mrs. Lee. – he smiled and looked at Hyuna who was curious – And are you the famous Hyuna?

- Are you my appa?

Donghae's eyes widened and Hyuna hid behind her grandmother who laughed and said:

- Don’t stay in this car. Come and have dinner.

Kyuhyun was about to say he was leaving, because he didn’t want to get in the way when Donghae looked at him and said,

- Come on, Kyu. My dad is making the food, so it's going to be something that will make our hearts happy.

- Yes... With lots of lard.

Mrs. Lee said and took Hyuna's hand, but the girl soon ran to her father after he got out of the car and hugged him as soon as he carried her and kissed her forehead. And when she looked at Kyuhyun, the little girl smiled and waved shyly. She already knew that the alpha wasn’t her appa, but she felt her father getting comfortable next to him.

And when everyone entered the house, Hyuna sat on the sofa and looked at Kyuhyun who sat down and said:

- I bet you're just as curious as your father.

- I am. – she answered proudly – And who are you?

- I 'm Cho Kyuhyun.

- Ah! I'm Lee Hyuna. – she smiled – Where do you know my daddy?

- We worked together, but we met before that.

Hyuna nodded and whispered:

- And you met my appa?

Kyuhyun didn’t know who Hyuna's appa was, so he just shook his head and pursed his lips as the girl sighed and became visibly sad. And since he didn’t want to see those sad eyes, the alpha smiled and said:

- I may not know who your appa is, but I know your dad is very nice and loves you very much.

- But he won’t let me have ice cream.

Kyuhyun laughed.

- Ice cream is good, but we get sick if we have lots of ice cream.

- Really?

- Yes. And your dad doesn’t want you to get sick, so he won’t let you have ice cream every single day.

Hyuna sighed, then giggled and said:

- I like you, Kyu.

- How nice. I also like you.

They smiled and Hyuna ran to her room when Donghae came back into the living room and asked:

- She asked a lot of questions and complained that I wouldn’t let her have ice cream, right?

- Basically, but I think we got along really well. – he smiled as the omega sat next to him and smiled – I have to meet your father.

- I know that, but he doesn’t like people to be in the kitchen when he's cooking. My mother stays there because she's an omega with an alpha’s temperament. – they laughed – But... Do you really want to stay? Maybe you have something interesting to do.

Kyuhyun smiled and took Donghae's hand, entwining their fingers and watching as the omega blushed at the touch. And when they looked at each other, the alpha said:

- What I have to do is here. I've waited so long to see you and now that we're here it seems unbelievable.

- And why?

- I don’t know. I think I always wanted to be around, but you had an alpha that was around even though he hurt your heart. Then the baby came and we pulled away. For me, I would have taken you with me and we would have raised Hyuna together. But I know things work differently in your head.

Donghae chuckled.

- It’s true. All that you said is true. But three years have passed and I believe I am now recovered from many things that have happened. – and whispered when Kyuhyun approached more – Melissa never lied, right?

- Never. She was always right, but I didn’t want to pressure you into anything. But now... If you're okay with it, I'd love to try.

Donghae smiled and closed her eyes as Kyuhyun brushed her lips over his chin.

- I want you to try.

And since there was no one there, they thought they were safe and kissed. But not for long, as Hyuna came bouncing as she hummed. Donghae then cleared his throat and smiled at his daughter as she sat down on the sofa and said:

- Grandma said we'll eat, so we can go there.

- Well then, let's go. – Donghae stood and held Hyuna's hand – What did grandpa make?

- Grandpa made pork, but grandma made salad because she doesn’t want us to get sick. And Kyu can’t get sick too, right daddy?

Kyuhyun laughed and said:

- I'll try not to get sick.

Hyuna smiled and took Kyuhyun's hand, leaving the alpha surprised. But he ended up smiling because Donghae, despite being surprised, smiled and went with them to the kitchen. And when he saw the alpha there, the omega's father narrowed his eyes. He knew that Donghae wouldn’t be single forever, but he would have done anything for his son to date only after he was fifty.

After everything that happened between Eunhyuk and Donghae (and seeing how sad his son was unable to sleep alone), Mr. Lee just wanted to protect his son and his granddaughter so they wouldn’t suffer.

- This is Cho Kyuhyun, Dad. He worked with me, but we met before that.

- Um... Nice to meet you. – they shook hands – Sit down, I'll serve the food.

Kyuhyun sat next to Donghae who sat next to Hyuna and pecked his daughter's cheeks. The girl giggled and closed her eyes as her father hugged her and said he loved her. She knew it and loved him very much. Kyuhyun, seeing that, was happy and smiled because it was the most beautiful scene of all. He even got married when he was in another country, but it didn’t work out because it shouldn’t be.

And now here he was watching Donghae following his natural instincts and being a good father.

- I made salad and I wish we all had a good meal. – Mrs. Lee said and smiled – And for my little doll, I made cake.

- Hey! I like cake.

- I know, and that's exactly why I made it. – the grandmother smiled and kissed the forehead of her smiling granddaughter – But how did you guys meet again? – she asked Kyuhyun. I thought you were in another country.

- My time at that work came to an end, so I had to go back. I came back yesterday, but only today I rehearsed Donghae in protest.

- And everything went well?

Kyuhyun and Donghae looked at each other and the omega said:

- You'll see it in the papers tomorrow. I would have stayed there, but I didn’t want the ants to eat my body.

- That's an exaggeration, Donghae.

- That isn’t true. You even saw how my clothes got dirty. – and when he realized his parents and his daughter were frightened, Donghae cleared his throat and said – It was a mess and you'll see everything in the papers tomorrow.

- Including the beautiful speech Donghae made when an idiot alpha approached to hurt Melissa. – Kyuhyun said and Donghae smiled as he blushed and stared at his plate. Mr. Lee then cleared his throat and said:

- So you two have known each other for a long time, and Donghae never took you to our house, Kyuhyun? Why?

Donghae looked at his mother, who shrugged, and looked at his father who was staring at Kyuhyun. Hyuna was the only one who didn’t mind that conversation, since she was entertained with the salad on her plate. The younger alpha then cleared his throat and said:

- I don’t know. I met Donghae when he was twenty, so I don’t think we had such a strong friendship until the time he went to work for Hyoyeon.

- Melissa has come to our house since she met Donghae and he was twenty at the time.

- Seriously? – Kyuhyun chuckled and looked at Donghae as if imploring for help. The omega then sighed and said:

- Melissa just went to our house because she invited herself. I never intended to take my friends there because we know a lot how that beta was received when I took him there.

- And Donghae is right. – his mother said, and Mr. Lee shrugged – But I'm glad I met Kyuhyun. He gave us a ride after I took Donghae to the doctor.

- It's been so long. – Donghae laughed at Kyuhyun who blushed, smiled and said:

- I remember you looking forward to seeing your baby. And now your baby is three and is messing with the salad there.

Donghae sighed and Hyuna giggled, but then pouted when her father took the spoon to help her eat – she didn’t like it, but she didn’t have much choice. Mrs. Lee shook her head as her husband laughed and said he couldn’t believe he had another blessing in his life as his granddaughter because she behaved very much like her father.

But Donghae knew very well that this was far from true. Sometimes he saw Hyuna act just as Eunhyuk acted when he was sulking. The omega shook his head and continued to help his daughter eat, even if she said she didn’t need help. But after that almost interrogatory to get to know Kyuhyun and understand what his intentions were with Donghae, dinner was lively and the conversation flowed naturally.

Mr. Lee would always be worried about Donghae, but at least he knew that distrust no longer existed – something he never told his son was that he never trusted 100% in Eunhyuk. Mr. Lee was a conservative alpha and he really wanted Donghae to have married before he had children, but he always had to deal with the fact that his son wasn’t the omega that society wanted him to be. But still, he didn’t like to see an older alpha approach that way – and it got worse when he knew the things Eunhyuk did.

But seeing how Kyuhyun was smiling at Donghae who acted naturally because they really knew each other, Mr. Lee was a little more relieved. But he would keep an eye on their relationship because he would protect his son – and his granddaughter – from anyone who wanted to hurt him.

And after dinner, when Hyuna finally asked all kinds of questions for Kyuhyun who had fun answering them all, Donghae decided to get his daughter to sleep and took her to brush her teeth. After helping her put on her pajamas, he laid her on her bed and smiled as she took the plush monkey and whispered:

- Kyu is so cool, daddy. I liked him.

- How nice. It's good to know that, but still he's not your appa.

- But will he be?

Donghae sighed. Even though Eunhyuk's name wasn’t on Hyuna's birth certificate, he made a promise to the alpha that he would never let another alpha take over her paternity – Eunhyuk never knew that promise, actually, but Donghae liked to think it was his single debt with him.

- No. I don’t want another alpha to assume something that he isn’t in your life. You have me and have your appa. Just the two of us. – Hyuna pouted and Donghae hugged her – I know you want to know about your appa, but just... I'll tell you.

- Really? – she was surprised because her father didn’t even mention her appa’s name – Now?

- No, I'll tell you, but you have to wait. – he kissed her forehead and smiled – And now the most beautiful little flower in the world is going to sleep and have sweet dreams, right?

- Right! – she giggled and pecked at his father's cheek – Good night, daddy!

- Good night, sweetheart.

Donghae smiled and turned off the bedroom light when Hyuna hugged the plush and closed her eyes to sleep. He scratched the back of his head and went into the living room – and almost laughed because Kyuhyun was being bombarded by the questions his parents were asking. But nothing about his intentions or anything. They just wondered why they wanted to know about the country he's been working in the past few years.

- She slept?

- Yes, but I think I'm going to need to have a talk with her about that subject. – Donghae sighed and his parents understood and nodded – Anyway... I hope she understands.

- She'll understand if you use the right words. – Mrs. Lee said and pulled her husband – What if you, old man, help me to do the dishes?

Mr. Lee sighed and waved to Kyuhyun, who waved and stood. The alpha then looked at Donghae and said:

- I think I should leave now, but I hope we can go out tomorrow.

- Of course we can. You already know the way. – they laughed and Donghae took Kyuhyun to the door – I'll see you tomorrow then.

- See you tomorrow.

They smiled and Donghae closed his eyes as Kyuhyun pecked his lips – then blushed as he looked at the alpha that smiled and winked. And after he entered the house and closed the door, the omega laughed at himself and took a deep breath. He didn’t think he would like Kyuhyun that way, but he was glad to see that he was finally ready to take an important step.

The only person who was shocked to see it happen was Hyang who wondered why he was still spying on Donghae. She knew that this news wouldn’t make Eunhyuk happy and would probably only accelerate his plans. But Hyang wouldn’t say anything until he was sure something was going on between Kyuhyun and Donghae.

Anyway, she didn’t want to be the person to give this news.

…–––...
The next day...

- So you mean Kyuhyun called you out? – Jungsu asked as Donghae finished packing – How excited are you?

- I don’t know. Think extremely excited? – they laughed – It's a very different feeling because it's been three years since I've been dating anyone.

- I see… And you miss him?

Donghae sighed and stared at his reflection in the mirror. Then he looked at Jungsu and said:

- Sometimes I think about him a lot, but I'll leave because I don’t want him to influence my decisions now. – and sat on the bed so he could put on his shoes – But anyway, I understood my feelings for him. I really liked him, and still like him, but it wasn’t love and it never will be. Maybe it's affection because we had good times and I liked how we understood each other.

- And when did you have time to think about it?

- Right after Hyuna and I came to live here. The memories came and I cried a lot, but then I reflected on my life and realized that I am needy. So I've decided that my daughter will always be my priority.

- And now your heart as well.

Donghae laughed and said:

- Yes. My daughter and I are priorities.

Jungsu smiled and stood up as Donghae stood. They left the room and Hyuna ran to hug her father. As her grandparents had left earlier, she would stay at Heechul and Jungsu's house while playing with Ryeowook.

- You look so handsome, daddy!

- Really? Thank you.

- Are you bringing chocolate to me and Ryeowook?

Donghae laughed.

- Yes, I am. If you behave, we can go out tomorrow after the church and I'll take Ryeowook with us.

- Yay! I'll behave.

- Then give me a big hug.

Hyuna hugged Donghae and took his h