Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Minho drummed his fingers on the steering wheel of his car, humming a soft tune as he stared at the entrance of the parking lot. The light drizzle created a misty effect, blurring the bright lights spilling from the signage of the adjacent fast-food restaurant into a pretty glow. The lot was mostly empty, aside from a beat-up Toyota Yaris, a Ford Anglia and Minho’s own Volvo EX90.

Technically, it was his ex-husband's, but Jisung refused to take it after the divorce, claiming that he wanted as few reminders as possible that they had been married in the first place - something Minho was sure he found quite difficult considering they had two children together.

He tried to be bitter about it in the beginning, but after two years of therapy, and many drunk conversations with Hyunjin, Minho had come to understand why Jisung wanted nothing to do with him. He failed his husband in the worst way an alpha could fail an omega after all.

Minho sighed softly and glanced at his wristwatch. Jisung was late, and he was worried. His ex-husband was known for his Type A personality, punctuality and meticulous planning. It was unlike him not to keep to his schedule, especially since it was a Sunday afternoon which meant Seungmin and Chan would return to Jisung’s apartment for the week.

Despite his abhorrence for Minho, Jisung loved their children as much as an omega could ever love their pups. It was the only reason Jisung allowed Minho to still be a part of his life. Despite the messy divorce, Jisung was adamant that Minho still play a prominent role in their children's lives, hence the shared custody, and occasional awkward event they attended together.

The ticking of his wristwatch and the sound of Seungmin jabbing his thumbs against his Nintendo Switch was giving Minho a headache. The uneasy feeling in his belly increased by the second as time marched on. Chan snored comfortably in his car seat, his chubby cheeks pressed against his soft receiver blanket. Minho checked his cell phone for the tenth time in five minutes.

Finally, bright headlights announced Jisung's arrival. Minho breathed a sigh of relief. He ran his hand through his hair a few times to straighten it out. Chan’s activity of choice for the afternoon was 'styling' his father’s hair which consisted of harsh tugging and ruffling.

“Dad, Appa’s here!” Seungmin announced, tossing his Switch aside and pressing his face against the window, the glass fogging up with his breath.

“Yep, that’s him alright,” Minho couldn’t help his amusement as Jisung parked beside him, comically outside the lines. “Don’t forget that I’m taking you to school this week, so listen to your Appa and try to get out of bed on time in the mornings.”

“Ugh, I’ll try, Dad,” Seungmin groaned. “If you still stayed with us then I’d have way more time to sleep in the morning.”

Minho’s heart sank. Seungmin seemed to have adjusted well to the circumstances of his parents' divorce, but as time passed, the eleven-year-old began expressing his frustration and sadness over the arrangement and it broke Minho’s heart to see his eldest navigating these complex emotions so soon in life.

“We talked about this, buddy,” Minho said gently, opening his car door.

“I know, I know,” Seungmin crossed his arms. “But Appa still loves you, so I don’t know what he’s so mad about.”

Minho sucked in a breath and turned back to face his son, something he had been avoiding because Seungmin’s puppy-dog eyes were lethal, “We’ll talk about that more when I pick you up tomorrow morning for school, okay? Maybe don’t mention it to your Appa though.”

“Yeah, okay. He looks sad anyway,” Seungmin frowned out the window.

Minho turned to see Jisung leaning against his Hyundai, face downcast. Minho’s sensitive nose picked up the slightest hint of distress. The omega had taken to wearing scent blockers, but Minho, being his mated Alpha, was still able to detect his moods, even though his natural scent was completely erased.

“Everything okay?” Minho stood and asked over the roof of his car.

Jisung looked up in surprise. Minho felt a stirring in his gut, the same feeling he always got every time he made eye contact with his ex-husband, a flurry in his belly at the sight of those familiar brown eyes.

“Yes, I’m fine. I’m sorry that I’m late. I tutor after hours, and I got stuck with a parent- Hi sweetie!” Jisung was interrupted by Seungmin hopping out of the car and hurtling into him like the Tasmanian devil, his downy, cotton scent flaring in excitement.

Minho smiled at his eagerness. Seungmin missed Jisung on the weekends but never mentioned it because he thought it would upset Minho. He watched Jisung fuss over him, finger-combing Seungmin’s wavy hair and ushering him into his car and out of the light drizzle.

“But Appa, I have to help carry my bag!” Seungmin complained.

“In a second. I need to talk to your father about something,” Jisung closed the door and gave Seungmin a reassuring smile when he noticed the child’s worried expression.

He turned to Minho and huffed in exasperation, “I swear he looks more like you every day. You both have the exact same expression right now. Calm down, nothing’s wrong. I just wanted to ask why you sent me such a large amount of maintenance this month?”

Minho bit back a flirty remark. He liked when Jisung mentioned his resemblance to their children. He liked when Jisung acknowledged their connection even though he resented it. He just liked when Jisung looked at him with anything other than disappointment.

“Chan’s birthday is coming up soon,” Minho said. “He keeps mentioning a party. I thought we could throw him one for his friends at kindergarten. I’m sorry, I must have forgotten to text you about it.”

Jisung wiped away the fine mist of water off the back window of Minho’s car and smiled at Chan, sleeping peacefully in his car seat. Minho took the opportunity to stare at him over the roof of the car from his position outside the driver’s side door. Tiny water droplets settled into Jisung’s soft black hair and glittered in the dull light.

“Minho,” Jisung turned to him. “You did text me about that amount. I’m asking about the other large amount you sent later in the month.”

Minho fiddled with his car keys. He closed the door gently and trudged to the trunk of his car, glancing at Jisung as inconspicuously as he could. He opened the trunk and began pulling out Seungmin’s bag.

“Maintenance isn’t just for the boys,” Minho said finally. “You have them for more time than I do. Use the money for whatever you need.”

“That wasn’t part of the court arrangement,” Jisung said.

Minho glared at him. There was a lot he could accept about their situation. He could accept his own failures and the consequences they came with. He could accept the driving to and from each other’s homes and awkward dinners on holidays. He could even accept that Jisung may not love him anymore (not really). But nothing could prevent him from ensuring that his family lacked for nothing.

Because they were still his family and Minho was still very much in love with his omega. After the divorce, Minho spent all his time figuring out where he went wrong and how he could fix his mistakes and while he understood that Jisung may never forgive him, it didn’t mean that he would stop trying to earn it.

“Hyunjin said that Lix told Changbin you mentioned that you wanted a new pair of work pants,” Minho said hurriedly as he fiddled with the strap on Seungmin’s bag.

Jisung scowled, “You sent me enough to replace my wardrobe every season for the next four years.”

“Sorry…” Minho shifted his weight uncomfortably under Jisung’s stern gaze.

His alpha never got the memo about their divorce, and still viewed Jisung as his one true mate. Minho spent half of his time nowadays trying to quell the yearning of his alpha. He may have got drunk and gave in to his instinctual urge to provide.

He loved buying Jisung clothes. One of Minho’s favorite pastimes was coming home from shopping and watching his omega try on his purchases. He longed for the way Jisung would blush high on his cheeks under Minho’s heavy gaze.

The omega would end up bent over the nearest available surface while Minho drove into him furiously, drunk on lust and the intoxicating pleasure that came with slipping off Jisung’s new clothes just enough to palm at the smooth skin of his waist, to press his face into his neck and scent him almost aggressively, and most of all, to slide into his tight ass, leaking slick messily down his warm thighs.

“I’m sending it back,” Jisung crossed his arms and the hem of his cream sweater shifted up slightly, revealing the waist line of his pants. Minho took a deep breath. He remembered those pants. He was pretty sure that Chan was conceived because of them.

“No,” Minho said firmly. “It’s coming down heavier now. You should get in the car or you’ll get soaked. The boys are tired.”

Jisung sighed in defeat, “Seungmin wants to help with the bags. I’ll send him over and get Chan. We’ll talk about this later.”

Jisung opened his car door and Seungmin hurried to Minho, grinning widely, "Dad, I finally reached a new level!”

Minho ruffled his hair and handed his son his lunch bag, “No way, you’ve been stuck on it all weekend. Good job! Carry this for me. I’ll grab your brother's things.”

Minho smiled as Seungmin chatted about the strategy he used to finally beat the games mini boss while they packed their bags and Chan’s assortment of stuffed animals (the cat ones mostly gifts from Yongbok) into Jisung’s car. Minho watched from the corner of his eye as Jisung cradled Chan’s sleeping form close to his body to shield him from the rain and moved quickly to buckle him into his car seat.

Something ached inside of Minho, a now familiar longing that shadowed him in his daily life. Minho wished that he would wake up just a couple of years back with the knowledge he had today. He swore to all the gods that he wouldn’t make the same mistakes twice.

After strapping Seungmin into his seat, Minho pulled out of Jisung’s car only for his eldest to cling to him tightly.

“Can’t you just come with us?” Seungmin asked, his voice small and scent damp.

Minho stayed half crouched into the backseat, petting his son's hair and back gently as he embraced him, “No, sweet boy. But all you have to do is fall asleep tonight and when you wake up, I’ll be there to take you to school.”

“But you won’t be there for supper, or bath time, or brushing my teeth, or tucking me into bed,” Seungmin’s voice was shaky.

Jisung looked to Minho in alarm from the driver's seat, “Dad’s got work, sweety. He has to leave now.”

Minho met Jisung’s eyes over Seungmin’s shaking form, the front of his shirt wet with his son's tears.

He mouthed a single word, “Please” and saw it in his omega’s eyes when he broke his strict rules for the first time since the divorce.

The desperation must have shown on his face, or in his eyes, or by the way his arms tightened around Seungmin’s body, because it took mere seconds for Jisung’s defensive gaze to melt into something… warmer.

“Minho…” Jisung began. “I think he needs you tonight. Will you stay?”

Minho was nervous as he pulled into the parking lot of Jisung’s apartment. It was a modest, but neat building with secure fencing and night guards. He piggy backed Seungmin to the car when he saw it. Jisung had parked and was struggling to lift Chan out of the backseat while simultaneously holding his tote back crammed with work supplies.

Seeing it in person made Minho feel a thousand times more guilty than his nightmares where he watched helplessly as his ignorant past self took his gorgeous husband for granted.

Two years ago, Minho wouldn’t have thought twice about this scene. He would have lifted Seungmin onto his shoulders and led the way to their front door, leaving Jisung to handle Chan.

The thing was, Jisung made it look easy. He was good at child rearing. He was gentle but firm, accommodating but strict, nurturing but knowing exactly when his children needed to exert their independence and he needed the hands off approach.

It used to amaze Minho, almost to the point of jealousy, because while he loved his children more than words could say, he never felt like he connected with them the way Jisung did.

Eventually he understood why. It was because Jisung had given himself sacrificially. He poured every drop of himself into his children, leaving nothing for himself. He gave up hobbies and friends, career opportunities and family, all because Minho had dropped the ball on him.

Minho was so blindly in awe of his ‘perfect’ family that he failed to see the cracks until they threatened the very foundation it stood on.

”Its just a glass! What do you mean you want a divorce? I’ll run the dish washer tonight!”

”It’s not just a fucking glass, Minho! It’s the load in the washing machine that’s been sitting there since last week! It’s the fact that I have to help Seungmin with his homework, then put Chan down, then put Hee in the bath-“

”I’m sorry! I’m sorry, okay? Tell me what to do! I’ll fix this.”

”I don’t want to tell you what to do! I can’t teach you how to be a father or a husband. You can’t fix something with a million broken pieces!”

Minho saw it and wondered how he possibly missed the hundreds or even thousands of times Jisung bore the responsibility of parenthood alone. His sweet, selfless omega, who would give himself over entirely for the sake of their pups.

So Minho did what he spent the last two years wishing he had - his Alpha duties. Minho sped toward Jisung, gently lifting his tote bag and holding the door open so Jisung could reach in for Chan without being crushed.

Jisung emerged with Chan in his arms, squirming in his sleep. Minho shut the door behind him gently.

“Thanks,” Jisung said quietly, moving to the trunk for the boy's bags and stuffed animals.

Minho placed his hand on the trunk, “Let’s go up, I’ll come back later and get these for you.”

Jisung gave him a strange look, as if he was going to snap at him, but his gaze landed somewhere over Minho’s shoulder and he simply nodded. He turned and headed to the elevators. Seungmin hugged his father tightly.

“Thanks for staying, dad,” Seungmin whispered.

“You don’t have to thank me for that, pup,” Minho hoisted Seungmin higher up, and much to his delight, raced down the parking lot, overtaking a startled Jisung.

They met at the elevator, and Seungmin hopped off his back to push the button. Minho held out his arms as Jisung approached.

“Let me take him,” Minho offered.

Jisung raised an eyebrow, “I’ve got him.”

“He’s gotten heavy,” Minho insisted. “I’ll carry him up.”

And with that, he lifted Chan out of Jisung’s arms, desperately trying to ignore the way his hands brushed against the soft skin of Jisung’s midriff exposed by Chan’s foot kicking up the omega’s sweater.

“Hurry up,” Seungmin waved at them from the elevator where he was keeping the doors open.

Minho urged a confused looking Jisung forward by the small of his back, earning him a glare. Maybe he was pushing it, but luck seemed to be on his side tonight and if he was blessed with one night with his family again he would cherish every second of it.

Seungmin dragged him into the living room and kitchen as soon as Jisung keyed in the password to their apartment, showing him around and pointing out all his trophies on the shelf and Chan’s finger painting art on the refrigerator.

Chan stirred in his arms and his eyes lit up when he saw who was holding him, “Daddy?”

“Oh, Channie, you’re up!” Seungmin jumped up and down trying to see his brother.

Minho crouched down so they could talk.

“Seung-hyung! It’s daddy,” Chan pointed at him with spit slicked fingers and shining eyes. “Daddy’s in our house.”

“Yeah, and guess what? He’s staying over tonight!” Seungmin grabbed Chan’s hands and flapped them excitedly but carefully, the way only an older sibling had the thoughtfulness to do.

Chan gaped in confusion then frowned suddenly, “Appa?”

“Appa’s here, Chan,” Jisung said, perched on the armrest of one of the couches, sipping from a water bottle.

Chan’s little head moved back and forth between his fathers, “Daddy? Appa? Daddy? Appa?”

The shock of seeing them both together in his home must have been overwhelming for the poor boy and he burst into tears, his strawberry scent souring.

“Oh, sweety,” Jisung knelt beside them and embraced Chan while he was still in Minho’s arms.

This position gave him an up close view of the top of Jisung’s head and Minho tried his best not to breathe in too deeply and freak him out.

“Give him to me,” Seungmin said confidently.

He was met with surprised looks from both his parents.

“I know how to cheer him up,” Seungmin blinked his adorably large eyes, nodding as if to assure his parents that he was dependable.

Jisung and Minho exchanged a confused glance, but Minho nodded at his eldest.

“C’mon Chan,” Seungmin tugged on his brother's shirt. “Let’s go play with my Switch while Dad and Appa make supper.”

Chan sniffled slightly as he tugged on Minho’s hair, “’Tendo?”

“Yeah, I have a new Nintendo game,” Seungmin tugged again and Chan waddled to his older brother.

Seungmin groaned like an old man as he lifted Chan with all his strength, “We’ll be in our room.”

And with a light slam of their well-decorated door, because Seungmin had his hands full with his little brother and he had to push it shut with his foot, they disappeared into their room.

A soft sigh pulled Minho’s attention back to the omega beside him. Jisung sat heavily on the floor, shoulders sinking slightly.

“Hope you like boxed mac and cheese,” Jisung rolled his head to the side and winced, reaching up to massage the knot in his neck. “I was supposed to do a grocery run before we got home.”

Minho, generally blinded by Jisung’s timeless, ethereal beauty, did not have the luxury of staring at his husband up close like this very often. Jisung looked tired, beautiful still, but so exhausted it seemed to seep into his very bones and weigh his body down with additional weight.

“Don’t cook,” Minho squatted beside him.

“Huh?” Jisung paused his self massage and looked up.

“I’ll get us something,” Minho said. “Today was a long day.”

“But Seungmin asked us to cook-” Jisung started.

“-and you’re exhausted,” Minho stared at the pattern of the carpet. “I’ll take them with me and you can have a shower and rest. They’ll be stoked for takeout.”

“They have school tomorrow,” Jisung tried to argue weakly.

“We’ll have them in bed by nine,” Minho negotiated.

“I’ll come with,” Jisung conceded, standing up and stretching. “They can be a handful together.”

Minho followed him up and placed his hands on Jisung’s shoulders, pushing him back gently to sit on the couch, “And you’ll have them both all week. So let me take them. Tell me what you want for dinner.”

Jisung blinked up at him, “What- I- I’ll have whatever the kids are having.”

Minho’s alpha whined pathetically. His omega clearly did not take good care of himself. He made a mental note to send even more money to him.

“Tteokbokki?” Minho asked.

There was that look again. That look Jisung got when he remembered to put his guard back up. He opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by Chan pushing open his and Seungmin’s room door and poking his head out. He glanced at his parents then hurried back inside.

“He’s just making sure you’re both still there!” Seungmin shouted from his room.

Jisung’s expression turned to guilt and Minho knew that he had something on his mind. Something he found difficult to bring up but urgently needed to discuss.

“It’s a special night for them since I’m staying over. Let me treat all of you. We can talk after we put them to bed,” he said.

Jisung looked at him, this time with a softer expression, and Minho knew he had worn him down, “I’ll put their shoes back on.”

Minho had much to ponder as he drove to McDonald’s while his kids sang along to Ariana Grande’s Into You. Well, Chan yelled out nonsense, but Seungmin held the notes decently and Minho wondered if he could add vocal lessons to his little ace’s already packed schedule.

As they waited at the drive through, Minho tried to shove down the blooming hope that started rising in his chest the moment Jisung asked him to stay. Hope was a dangerous emotion and it terrified him to dare to think that he may be granted more time with his family if he played his cards right.

Their two years apart had morphed from bitter, tense interactions to something more mellow. Co-parenting two pups required a certain level of respect and civility. It demanded patience, understanding and love, if not for each other, then at least for their boys.

Minho still remembered the first time he made Jisung laugh after the divorce. He had the pups over for the weekend and Changbin stopped by, claiming to have missed his favorite kids, but secretly stocking Minho’s refrigerator with healthy meals. It made Minho wonder if he was one of Changbin’s favorite kids too, after all, they had met when Minho was just fourteen years old.

Changbin and his foul mouth led to Seungmin’s fascination with the “F” bomb and when Jisung came to fetch the boys that evening he was met with a exuberant cry of, “Appa, I fucking missed you!”

Jisung turned to Minho in alarm, only to be met with a pouty face, “It’s Changbin hyung’s fault! You know I don’t swear in front of our pups.”

Jisung let out a small giggle and Minho rode that high for a solid three months.

Minho ordered extra food so Jisung wouldn’t have to make lunch for the boys for school in the morning and berated himself for the nth time. It was really this easy to take a load off Jisung’s shoulders and it took Minho two years to get his head out of his ass and finally do so.

He didn’t deserve a second chance but Jisung deserved to be treated like the perfect omega he was.

Minho handed over his card to the man at the tteokbokki stand absently, wondering what Jisung wanted to talk about.

Minho was keeping a careful eye on their finances, knowing that Jisung’s salary was nowhere near enough to cover their needs. Minho paid roughly twenty times more than court ordered maintenance and stopped by with food, clothing, toys and paid for anything and everything else the boy's hearts desired from extra curricular activities to trips to a honey farm.

The only thing Minho wasn’t funding, (and he was trying to change that) was Jisung. Still, he knew that his omega would rather die than ask him for money, so Minho assumed he could rule that theory out.

Maybe he needed Minho to extend his weekend custody to three days, or Seungmin finally wore him down and Jisung was getting him a dog and wanted Minho’s opinion.

Minho counted the days in his head and an uglier option presented itself. If he was correct, Jisung’s heat would hit in just over a week.

What if he found someone to spend it with? His alpha burned in anger at the thought.

“Dad, what’s wrong?” Seungmin, observant as ever, must have detected the shift in Minho’s scent.

“Nothing’s wrong, pup,” Minho assured him. “Can you help your old man out and carry the food while I hold your brother and your bags?”

X X X

Dinner was a chaotic affair. Minho walked into the refrigerator when Jisung emerged from his room, fresh out of the shower and devoid of his scent blockers, smelling like peaches and clotted cream. Chan wet himself laughing while Seungmin dug into the freezer for a bag of peas.

Jisung looked at him in concern before taking Chan to the bathroom. Seungmin set the table while Minho reeled from the dual assault of smelling his omegas mouth watering scent after two years and seeing his thick thighs covered only with a small pair of pajama shorts.

He tried his best to listen to his son's rambles and not think about how he would worship Jisung’s thighs with the reverence of a holier man.

Jisung returned with a still giggly Chan and together they ate. Minho kept pushing food toward Jisung, wiping up the spills on and around Chan and forcing Seungmin to try the carrot sticks that came with his Happy Meal.

Dinner turned into Seungmin’s bath time and Chan’s bed time. Minho tried not to visibly react to his heart shattering when Jisung rocked Chan to sleep with a soothing lullaby and instead busied himself with cleaning up the kitchen and doing the dishes.

Seungmin took longer to settle into bed. He looked as sad as Minho felt that their shared time together was coming to an end.

“I’ll be here in the morning,” Minho ruffled his hair and pulled him into a hug, fearing that if he looked at his son's large eyes for much longer he would burst into tears the same way Chan had earlier. “We’ll have breakfast and then go to school.”

“But you won’t pick me up,” Seungmin sniffled. “And you won’t be here when I come home. You won’t be here to help Appa like today. He’s always so tired and sad-“

“Seungmin,” Jisung called from the doorway.

Seungmin hid his face in Minho’s neck, “I just miss the both of you. Why can’t I have you both?”

Minho rocked them back and forth gently until Seungmin’s breathing evened out. He laid him down gently and pulled his covers over him. Jisung padded over quietly and wiped away the tear tracks on their son’s face.

Minho wanted to reach out and do the same for Jisung but the omega was quick to run a hand over his cheeks, “Minho, we need to talk.”

Minho was waiting impatiently for this since he saw that telling looking Jisung sported earlier. Was this the chance he was dreaming of or was he about to get his heart broken again?

“We should talk but I’m so tired,” Jisung said, his warm eyes filled with more tears.

“Why are you tutoring after school?” Minho asked softly.

There was a pause and Jisung must truly have been tired because he answered quickly, “I needed the money for suppressants.”

“Why are you on suppressants?" Minho asked, his alpha howling in misery. Scent blockers were one thing but suppressants…

Jisung’s shoulders dropped, “Can we talk tomorrow? I really need to sleep.”

Minho took a calming breath, “Yeah, of course. I’ll take the couch.”

Jisung snorted, his eyes closed, “Minho, you won’t fit on the couch.”

“I’ll make it work,” Minho pleaded. “Please, I want to be here when they wake up.”

Jisung’s eyes shot open, “No! I don’t mean-“

Seungmin shifted in his sleep and Jisung dropped his voice to a whisper.

“I’m not sending you home,” he explained. “I mean that you should just sleep in my room.”

Minho was so stunned that he temporarily lost his hearing and missed a good portion of Jisung’s next sentence.

“Huh?” he asked dumbly.

“I said I cleared out my nest when you were picking up dinner,” Jisung repeated.

The warm feeling building in his chest turned to ice. Of course, he would never be allowed back into the sanctity of Jisung’s nest.

“Come on, you’ll wake the boys up if you stay here,” Jisung left the room.

X X X

After a quick shower, brushing his teeth, and wasting as much time as he could, Minho willed his racing heart to slow down and slipped into Jisung’s bed. He had to scrunch his legs a bit to fit and the blanket was a tad too small, but Minho was on cloud nine.

His alpha preened in satisfaction and begged him to reach out and grab Jisung’s waist.

“Sorry you had to clean out your nest,” Minho whispered as he stared at the glow in the dark stars on the ceiling.

“It’s okay,” Jisung’s speech slurred slightly, a testament to how tired he was. “Going into preheat soon. I would have needed to rearrange anyway.”

There was a moment of silence.

Minho wanted to let Jisung sleep, he was clearly tired and needed the rest, but it was just so nice to have Jisung speaking to him in this domestic setting.

Pillow talk was something Minho used to look forward to all day when they were together. Holding his lover close, talking about their respective days and cute things their sons did. Soft pecks and lingering touches turning into heated kisses and bruising grips.

Minho shook those thoughts away quickly and prayed his scent hadn’t given him away.

“Jisung?” Minho called out.

The lack of response and Jisung’s even breathing told him that his omega was fast asleep.

Minho fidgeted and shuffled around, the tantalizing sight of his beloved a mere foot away almost too much for him to handle. He stretched out his arm and his hand brushed against something soft.

He held his breath and hoped it was a pair of panties. He was only slightly disappointed when he pulled it closer and discovered it was a t-shirt because it was his t-shirt. More specifically, it was the t-shirt he gave Jisung when he built his nest for the first heat they spent together.

Its scent had all but faded from the material. Minho watched Jisung’s chest rise and fall and gripped the t-shirt tightly. In a moment of madness he brought the t-shirt to his neck and rubbed it along his scent gland. Jisung might kill him in the morning, but the knowledge that Jisung had kept a part of him so close after all this time emboldened him. Maybe everything wasn’t as hopeless as it seemed.

Minho shoved the t-shirt back into the space between the mattress and the headboard, finally finding enough peace to fall asleep.

He woke up feeling an odd mix of too warm and too cold. His feet were freezing but his upper half and especially his face was warm and toasty.

Minho nuzzled his face further into his pillow. He froze when his pillow shifted underneath him. What the fuck?

He lifted his head and almost choked on his own spit. Sometime during the night, he must have forced his way to Jisung’s side of the bed, pushed up his sleep shirt and commandeered his soft belly as a pillow. He tried to move away hurriedly but was stopped dead when Jisung reached for the nape of his neck and tugged on his hair hard.

Minho couldn’t hold back the whimper that escaped his throat and he prayed to any god that was listening to stop him from popping a knot at the sensation that shot through his body.

“Be quiet, you’ll wake the boys up,” Jisung mumbled. “Oh.”

Jisung must have finally woken up because his grip on Minho’s hair loosened. He pushed him off and sat up quickly, his cheeks reddening.

“S-sorry, my preheat must have started early,” Jisung stammered out. “I should take my suppressants today. I didn’t mean-“

He was interrupted by a knock on the door, “Are you awake yet?”

“Yes!” Jisung called.

“No,” Minho covered his face with the duvet.

Chan rocketed onto the bed and Minho swears that a few of his ribs cracked.

Seungmin tugged Jisung out of bed while Minho wrestled Chan, “Appa! Come and see what Chan and I made. You too, dad!”

Eventually, after much pleading and puppy dog eyes, Minho dragged himself out of Jisung’s bed. His omega was refusing any eye contact with him, no doubt due to his embarrassment from earlier. A shame really, Minho loved his eyes.

Seungmin and Chan led them to the kitchen, where breakfast was waiting – a few reheated chicken nuggets, a couple of slices of very brown toast and orange juice in their best mugs.

Minho ate until there were only crumbs left and Seungmin beamed with pride. Jisung hurried to help Chan pack for kindergarten and Minho had the privilege of being allowed to watch Seungmin go about his morning routine.

Seungmin helped Chan put on his shoes, “I can’t believe how tiny your feet are, Chan!”

Chan giggled and flapped his arms, “Seung-hyung, look my wings!”

“Hmm, maybe you can be a pterosaur for Halloween this year.”

Minho listened to them fondly from the kitchen as he stirred his coffee. Jisung was still half asleep, and busy pouring his milk onto the counter. Minho held his forearm gently and lifted the carton from him.

“Oh,” Jisung stared at the mess.

Minho grabbed a wet rag from the sink and began cleaning the mess. He steered Jisung to a bar stool and finished making his coffee.

“Are you okay?” he asked.

Jisung nodded weakly, “Yes, fatigue is a symptom of my suppressants – yes I know, we’ll talk about it later.”

Minho tried to school his expression but his distaste must have manifested in his scent.

“I’ll call in early today,” Minho said. "Where do you want to talk?”

“Just come home,” Jisung’s speech was slurring again.

Minho frowned and placed a palm on Jisung’s forehead, then his cheek, “Warm, your preheat is coming.”

“No, I took my suppressants,” Jisung said all the while leaning into Minho’s cool palm.

“Dad, we’re ready!” Seungmin exited his room and Chan hurried behind him.

Jisung rushed to help them with their bags and coats at the door, “I should just come down to the parking lot.”

“No,” Minho insisted. “You need to rest. Go back to bed. I’ll see you later.”

“You’ll be here when I get home?” Seungmin’s doe eyes widened.

“Your father is staying for supper again,” Jisung combed through Seungmin’s stubborn bangs.

This was news to Minho, who only expected a talk, but who was he to look a gift horse in the mouth?

Seungmin pumped his fist in the air, “Awesome! I can tell you all about Jeongin’s pet lizard.”

“Okay pups, be good for your teachers,” Jisung squished Seungmin and Chan into hugs and kissed their cheeks. “Chan-ah, please try and eat your lunch today.”

Maybe it was a spur of the moment action or the wholesome moment of saying goodbye to your kids when they go off to school. Maybe it was the familiarity of the situation or the ease of the dynamics. All Minho could do was blink and hustle his pups out the door before his mind could catch up with the fact that Jisung pulled him in by his tie (Minho always kept a spare set of work clothes in his car) and kissed him goodbye too.

He saw the panic in his omegas eyes the moment he pulled back.

“Gotta be preheat,” Minho mumbled, then physically carried his cheering sons out the apartment, leaving behind a blushing Jisung.

Seungmin cheering for an unknown but suspected reason, and Chan cheering because Seungmin was cheering, lasted the entire ride to school.

Minho kissed his boys goodbye, ignored Seungmin’s wiggling eyebrows and drove to work all in a daze, with more questions then he could possibly answer alone.

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number, “Hyung, I need your help and wisdom.”

“Last time we spoke you said that I was the only one in our friend group that didn’t get a turn with the singular brain cell we share. Don’t hyung me, you menace, call the hyung currently holding the brain cell.”

“Last night I slept over at Jisung’s apartment and I found my shirt in his nest and he’s on suppressants but he’s still going through preheat because he kissed me goodbye even though I'm pretty sure we got divorced two years ago!" Minho spiraled.

“Well fuck me. Where are you? Give me ten minutes.”