Chapter Text
Waking Up Slow.
Chapter 1
The final notes of the song still hummed in Yangyang’s bones as the stage lights cut to black. Adrenaline coursed through him, lifting every step he took off the stage. The crowd’s roar lingered in his ears and he couldn’t stop the grin that spread across his face.
Backstage, the dressing room door slammed open hard enough to rattle the walls. Hendery stumbled in first laughing, one arm hooked tightly around Dejun’s shoulders. “Did you hear that crowd?” he was saying, breathless and giddy.
Dejun barely got a word in before Hendery dropped onto the couch and pulled him down too, placing him firmly into his lap. Dejun let himself fall against him, eyes still shining as Hendery absentmindedly started tracing circles on his arm like he didn’t even realise he was doing it.
Ten came in right behind them - glowing - there was no other word for it. His usual sharpness had melted into something looser, brighter, like he was still standing under the stage lights. “You almost missed your cue,” he shot at Hendery, though he was grinning when he said it.
“But I didn’t miss it,” Hendery shot back immediately. “I just made the whole stage more dramatic.”
Winwin slipped in next, quieter, pushing his damp hair back off his forehead with a small exhale, like he was finally letting the performance leave his body. He didn’t say anything, just took it all in with a calm, satisfied look.
Kun followed next, already in full caretaker mode, arms loaded with water bottles. He passed them out one by one like a ritual, not even asking.
“Drink,” he said simply.
Yangyang kicked the door shut behind him and flopped backward onto the other couch like his bones had given up all at once. “I think I left my soul out there,” he groaned, though he was smiling so wide it ruined the effect.
“You don’t have one,” Ten said, dropping down beside him without hesitation, their shoulders knocking together.
Yangyang turned his head just enough to squint at him. “Rude. I just saved that last chorus.”
Ten bumped his knee in return, eyes bright. “Yeah, yeah. You were good. Don’t let it get to your head.”
“Too late,” Yangyang shot back instantly.
“Man, that bridge though…” Hendery started, then cut himself off with a sharp inhale like he was reliving it. “That was insane tonight. I swear the floor was shaking.”
“The timing locked in,” Kun added, leaning back against the counter now, finally taking a sip of his own water. “Everything just…clicked.”
Dejun hummed softly in agreement, still tucked into Hendery’s body. “You could feel it,” he said, voice quieter but certain. “The crowd was with us the whole time.”
“And your high note?” Kun added, pointing at him with the bottle. “Ridiculous. Completely ridiculous.”
Hendery beamed like he’d personally accomplished it. “Yeah, that one…” he squeezed Dejun a little tighter “...that one made people lose their minds.”
Dejun huffed, trying to look unimpressed, but the corner of his mouth betrayed him.
Winwin threw a towel across toward Yangyang. “Your rap hit harder tonight too Yang,” he said, calm as ever.
Yangyang caught it one-handed and pressed it to his face with a dramatic sigh. “Finally, some appreciation in this room.”
“If we’re gonna talk about appreciation?” Hendery perked up immediately, eyes lighting with mischief. “Let’s talk about Ten’s fuck hot dancing tonight.”
Ten didn’t even look surprised. He leaned back, one arm stretched along the back of the couch behind Yangyang, completely at ease. “Careful,” he said lazily. “You’re about to sound obsessed with me!”
“I am obsessed,” Hendery shot back. “That last song? Way too fucking sexy. I saw at least three people ascend.”
Kun snorted. “And you unbuttoned your shirt again.”
Ten glanced down at himself like he’d only just noticed. “Choreography casualty,” he said, completely unapologetic. “Buttons are weak.”
“Convenient,” Yangyang muttered into the towel.
Across the room, Hendery had started stealing sips from Dejun’s water, earning a half-hearted swat that he dodged easily, laughing again like he couldn’t help it.
The noise didn’t drop all at once, it just thinned out. Winwin was still humming under his breath like he hadn’t noticed he was still doing it. Kun moved around the edges of the room, picking things up, putting them somewhere better, not breaking stride with the conversation. Hendery kept nudging at Dejun just to get something back, a word, a shove, anything and seemed satisfied every time he did.
Ten hadn’t moved away from Yangyang. If anything, he’d shifted closer without making a point of it, knee still pressed in, arm stretched along the back like it had always been there.
Yangyang lowered the towel, watching it all with a crooked smile.
“Yeah,” he murmured to no one in particular, stretching his legs out and letting them bump the table. “Tonight was good.”
////
Yangyang stepped out of the shower and rubbed a towel roughly over his head, then wrapped another low around his hips before brushing his teeth and attempting a bit of skincare. The post-performance buzz had softened into a pleasant, heavy warmth that made every movement feel slow and easy.
He walked to his room, dropped the damp towel, and pulled on an oversized sleep t-shirt and black briefs, the fabric soft against his still-warm skin. Barefoot, he wandered toward the kitchen, the dorm was quiet except for the faint hum of the refrigerator.
Ten was already there, standing at the counter with nothing but a white towel slung around his waist. Droplets traced slow paths down the line of his spine and along the sharp cut of his hip bones as he reached for a glass.
Yangyang paused in the doorway for half a second, then continued forward, opening the fridge and grabbing a cold bottle of water. The cool air brushed against his bare legs.
Ten turned, glass in hand, and gave a small, tired smile. “Hey, want to watch a movie in my room? Just to unwind a bit.”
Yangyang leaned against the counter, the cool edge pressing into his lower back. “Yeah,” he said, voice soft in the quiet kitchen. “Sounds good.”
Yangyang slipped into Ten’s room and Ten followed a moment later, still wearing only the towel. Yangyang couldn’t help the small inhale he took - the air inside felt heavier than usual, warmer, laced with a richer scent that curled around Yangyang’s senses. It was deep and warm like sun-warmed cedarwood mixed with something darker, almost smoky, edged with a faint trace of warm spice that lingered on the back of the tongue. It was unmistakably Ten’s alpha scent, but tonight it sat thicker in the room than normal.
Yangyang casually thought that Ten’s scent suppressants must have worn off quickly tonight. The room smelled nice, like really nice.
Ten didn’t say anything as he reached the side of the bed. With casual ease he let the towel drop to the floor, the fabric pooling at his feet. Yangyang’s gaze flicked away, a quick flush creeping up to his cheeks. He busied himself with the hem of his t-shirt, telling himself it was nothing. He’d seen Ten naked plenty of times before, changing after practice, in shared hotel rooms, whatever. Nothing new. Still, the heat in his face refused to settle right away.
Ten slipped into his favorite worn pajama set - loose black shorts and a matching oversized button-up that hung open at the collar - then climbed into bed. He patted the space beside him.
“Come here.”
Yangyang slid under the covers. Ten shifted immediately, arranging them so Yangyang’s back pressed against his chest, bodies slotting together in a comfortable spoon. The warmth of Ten’s body seeped through the thin fabric of his clothes.
Ten reached for the remote on the nightstand, clicked the TV on, and started the movie. Without a word he pulled Yangyang even closer, one arm sliding around his waist, and tucked his face into the curve of Yangyang’s neck. His nose brushed lightly against Yangyang’s skin, the cedar and warm spice scent wrapping around them both as the movie began to play.
Yangyang lay still in the circle of Ten’s arms, the movie flickered across the screen, but Yangyang was having trouble focusing on it. Ten’s scent kept drifting over him in slow, steady waves, settling deep into his lungs with every breath.
As a beta he shouldn’t be able to pick it up so well and he definitely shouldn’t like it as much as he did. Most betas could barely pick up on alpha or omega scents at all, just faint background notes if anything. Yangyang had always caught them sharper, clearer, but he’d kept that small difference locked tight inside himself, never mentioned it to anyone.
Drawing attention was the last thing he wanted. Blending in, staying quiet in the middle of the pack, that was the part of being a beta he loved most. No spotlight, no expectations, no instincts yanking him around by the leash. He was grateful for it, very grateful. Grateful to not have ruts clawing at him, no heats wrecking his schedule and stripping away control. He liked his independence, liked moving through the world on his own terms without biology dictating every feeling.
Still, in the deepest, quietest corner of his mind, a tiny sharp pang of envy sometimes surfaced when he watched omegas being quietly doted on by their alphas - protected, cared for, wanted in that instinctive, undeniable way.
Hendery and Dejun made it look effortless, nothing dramatic, nothing showy, just the kind of attention that never really switched off. He’d once hinted at the feeling to Kun and Winwin during a late night talk, testing the waters, but neither of them had seemed to understand. So he’d never said it out loud to anyone else.
Ten shifted behind him, nose brushing a little lower against his neck, arm tightening comfortably around his waist. The cedar spiced scent grew warmer, closer. Yangyang closed his eyes for a second, letting the movie’s low soundtrack fill the silence, and tried not to think about how perfectly the smell wrapped around him tonight.
Yangyang stayed perfectly still as Ten’s nose pressed more firmly into the curve of his neck, right over the spot where a scent gland would sit if he were anything other than a beta. The warmth of Ten’s scent deepened, wrapping even tighter around them.
They were best friends, the kind who could sit in silence for hours and still feel completely comfortable. But there was also this small, unspoken thing between them that neither of them really talked about. Sometimes, on quiet nights like this, when the dorm was still and Ten seemed a little needier, maybe drifting close to the edge of a rut - Ten would scent him.
It had started maybe a year ago when Ten had asked once if he could, voice low in the dark, and Yangyang had shrugged with practiced nonchalance and said, “Yeah, if you want,” like it didn’t matter either way. In truth he had wanted it more than he was willing to admit, even to himself.
Ten nuzzled in deeper, the tip of his nose dragging slowly along the soft skin just below Yangyang’s jaw. His lips parted slightly, and then like it was the most natural thing in the world Ten began to scent Yangyang. Ten rubbed deliberately against the same spot, slow and careful at first, spreading his warm cedarwood scent in steady layers.
But tonight it gradually shifted. Ten’s breath grew heavier, the motion turning firmer, more insistent. His arm around Yangyang’s waist tightened almost possessively as he pressed harder, jaw dragging in longer strokes, a low rumble starting in his chest that wasn’t quite a purr. His alpha was slipping forward unexpectedly, instincts sharpening, the scenting growing greedier, almost hungry, as if he couldn’t quite stop himself from marking Yangyang more thoroughly.
Yangyang’s pulse spiked under the sudden intensity. Then Ten stilled. He pulled back just enough to breathe, the rumble cutting off. After a beat he let out a soft, slightly unsteady laugh against Yangyang’s shoulder.
“Sorry,” he murmured, voice lighter now, forcing casual. “Got a little carried away there.” He loosened his hold around Yangyang’s waist and shifted back into a more relaxed spoon, though his nose still rested close to his neck. “But you smell different,” Ten murmured against his skin, voice low. “Did you get a new perfume or bodywash?”
“Yeah,” Yangyang answered, keeping his tone casual. “Kun gave me a new set for my twenty-first birthday last week.”
“Mmm. I like the smell.”
Ten nuzzled in closer, pressing his face more firmly into the curve of Yangyang’s neck again.
Ten’s scent was both appealing and relaxing at the same time, sinking into Yangyang. His eyelids grew heavy, the movie blurring. He never saw the end of it. Sleep pulled him under fast and deep, the steady rhythm of Ten’s breathing lulling him completely.
He woke up too hot, blinking at the morning light shining through the gap in the blinds.
Ten was draped fully around him now, chest pressed to his back, one leg hooked over his thigh, arm heavy across his waist. The room felt stifling. Yangyang blinked blearily, disoriented, until he registered the insistent buzzing vibrating against the floor beside the bed. His phone.
He reached down, fingers fumbling, and grabbed it. The screen lit up with dozens of unread messages, all from Renjun.
He remembered then. Last week Renjun had casually mentioned his heat was due soon and asked if Yangyang could help him through it again. It was something Yangyang had done for his close friend for a while now.
Renjun hated alphas and their possessive, controlling ways, so he trusted only Yangyang to stay with him during heats - no knot, no rut aggression, just safe, familiar comfort. Yangyang had always said yes without hesitation.
Renjun had texted him last night asking if he’d still be able to come over today if the heat started as expected, and Yangyang had replied with a simple “yeah, of course.” Now the messages were pouring in, rapid and increasingly needy.
The latest ones flashed on the screen:
renjun: yangyang where the hell are you
renjun: my heat just hit and i’m dying over here
renjun: get your ass to my dorm right now i need you
renjun: don’t make me send Jaemin over to drag you here, you lazy beta
renjun: please hurry i’m so uncomfortable and you’re the only one i want here 😠
Yangyang stared at the messages, Renjun’s usual sassy, bossy tone was laced with that rare soft whine he only ever showed to a handful of people. He let out a quiet breath, thumb hovering over the screen as another text popped up.
renjun: yangyang i swear if you’re still sleeping i’m going to bite you myself when you get here
Ten stirred behind him.
The arm around Yangyang’s waist tightened without warning, fingers pressing into the soft fabric of his sleep shirt, pulling their bodies even more flush together. Ten’s nose pushed deeper into the curve of his neck, breath hot against his skin. Then Yangyang felt Ten take a deep inhale and a low sound rumbled in Ten’s chest - not quite a purr, not quite a growl - but still there.
His leg hooked heavier over Yangyang’s thigh, locking him in place as if the simple act of Yangyang moving slightly had triggered something unconscious. Ten’s face turned further into his neck, lips brushing the same spot he’d scented so thoroughly the night before, and he inhaled again slow and deep, almost searching. The rumble deepened for half a second, possessive and unthinking, before it softened again.
Ten didn’t wake fully. His breathing stayed heavy and slow and his body stayed coiled tight around Yangyang’s, every line of him pressed close. His thumb traced one absent, lazy circle against Yangyang’s hip.
Yangyang let out a soft giggle, the sound light in the quiet room, and batted at Ten’s arm, trying to keep everything easy and familiar.
“Hey, don’t be going all alpha on me,” he said, pushing gently against Ten’s chest.
Ten stirred, eyes cracking open a little. He loosened his hold immediately, arm sliding back as he rolled slightly away. A faint flush crept up the side of his neck, and he rubbed a hand over his face, letting out a short quiet laugh.
“Shit…sorry,” he muttered, voice rough from sleep. “Didn’t mean to turn into a koala there." He stretched one leg out, deliberately putting a little more space between them, then shot Yangyang a lazy grin. “Blame that new bodywash of yours, it smells too good”.
Yangyang smiled, sitting up slowly and swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. He glanced at his phone, the screen still lit with Renjun’s messages.
“Renjun’s heat started,” he said, keeping his tone casual as he scrolled through the latest texts. “He’s blowing up my phone. Sounds like it hit harder than he expected. I told him last week I’d help him through it again.”
He stood, stretching his arms overhead, the oversized sleep shirt riding up a little. “I should probably head over before he actually does send Jaemin to drag me over.”
Ten’s grin faltered for half a second. His eyes flicked to the glowing screen in Yangyang’s hand, then away just as quickly. He sat up against the headboard, one knee drawn up, fingers idly picking at a loose thread on the blanket. The easy smile returned, but it sat a little tighter at the corners.
“Go save the day, then,” he said, voice light. “Tell him I said hi.”
Yangyang lingered for a moment longer, unsure. For a second Ten’s scent seemed to shift a little, the warm cedarwood turning a touch sharper. He brushed the thought away. Probably just his imagination.
He slipped out of Ten’s room and quickly typed a reply to Renjun: On my way, give me twenty minutes.
In the bathroom he splashed water on his face, brushed his teeth, and threw on a loose hoodie and comfortable sweatpants. When he stepped into the kitchen, Ten was already there, pouring iced coffee into a travel mug. Without a word Ten clicked the lid on and slid it across the counter along with a protein bar.
“You’ll need to keep your strength up,” Ten said, the corner of his mouth lifting into a smirk.
Yangyang took both, fingers brushing Ten’s for a brief second. “I don’t know when I’ll be back. Depends on when Renjun’s done with me. Can you tell Kun where I am?”
Ten nodded once, eyes steady on him. “Yeah. I’ve got it.”
Ten minutes later Yangyang stepped into the Dream dorm and was instantly hit by a thick wave of Renjun’s omega heat scent - sweet and heavy, like ripe peaches, edged with something needy and urgent that filled every corner of the space.
In the kitchen, Jaemin stood gripping the edge of the counter, jaw tight, shoulders tense like he was physically holding himself back. His eyes looked a little glazed, discomfort clear in the set of his mouth.
“I’m getting out of here,” Jaemin said, voice strained but gentle. “Jeno already left too. We’ll both be back sometime tomorrow.” He angled a serious look straight at Yangyang. “Promise me you’ll take good care of him, okay?”
Yangyang nodded. “I will. I always do.”
Jaemin nodded toward the fridge. “I’ve left a couple of meals in there for you both that I made - some soup and some beef noodles. Just heat them up when you’re hungry. And there’s some drinks in there too - water, juice, and a few energy drinks.”
“Thanks, Jaemin.”
Jaemin paused on his way to the door, tilting his head slightly as he looked at Yangyang again. “Why do you smell different?”
Yangyang felt heat creep up the back of his neck, suddenly very aware of the layers of Ten’s scent still clinging to his skin from last night. He looked down at the floor self-consciously.
“I fell asleep in Ten’s bed,” he said, a little shyly.
Jaemin’s brows pulled together. “No it’s different..it’s not like Ten hyung’s scent.”
Yangyang shrugged, “Erm, I got a new body wash. Kun gave it to me for my birthday.”
Jaemin looked at him for another second, clearly a little confused, but still eager to get out of there, so he let it drop with a small nod. “Alright. Take care of our Injunnie.”
He gave Yangyang one last pained smile before slipping out the door, leaving Yangyang with Renjun’s heat scent calling to him from down the hallway.