Chapter Text
“Between you and me,” Felix whispers over the table, “In this day and age, how dumb do you have to be to get pregnant?”
“Hey!” Minho interjects. ‘Sometimes. You do everything right, everyone wears everything they’re supposed to wear, and one of those little fuckers just gets through.”
“Right.” Felix giggles. “But seriously, I can’t believe Seoyoon is pregnant. She’s like twenty-three! And you know, an unmated omega will hardly be able to take care of a pup on their own.”
Minho couldn’t be more aware of it, in fact. As an unmated omega himself, his mind has been working double shifts trying to come up with a plan since he put two and two together after throwing up for a whole week.
He hardly ever gets sick, and after not going into heat when he was supposed to three days ago, everything just added up into the inevitable answer. He is pregnant. Minho hasn’t taken any tests yet, mostly because he’s scared, but also because Felix is getting married tomorrow and, as his best man, Minho’s been plenty busy.
So if Lee Minho is trying to ignore the dooming reality of being twenty-seven, unmated, and pregnant – especially when the father is no one other than his ex – no one can really judge him. He has yet to tell anyone about his suspicion, although right now may not be the best time.
Just as Minho is about to start spiraling again, the sharp clink of a fork against a champagne glass cuts through the room, followed by someone switching on the microphone near the stage.
“Oh, hey. Hello, can you guys hear me ok?” Jisung starts a little shy, “Sorry, hi. For anyone who doesn’t know me, I’m Han Jisung, and I have the pleasure of being Chanie Hyung’s best man.” Jisung is smiling ear to ear as he speaks now, every ounce of nervousness gone. “I’m also Felix’s older brother by 1 minute and 37 seconds, so you could say I’m wedding guest royalty!” All the aunts and uncles are laughing, and Minho can’t quite hide the smile pulling on his lips.
“But seriously,” Jisung goes on, “I cannot express how happy I am to be marrying off my twin brother and my best friend tomorrow! I hope you will make each other the happiest in the years to come. Love is the most beautiful thing we could celebrate, and I am so proud of both of you for taking this important step. A toast to the Bang and Lee families!”
Everyone in the room raises their glasses as Jisung steps off the stage. Minho might be going insane, but he swears Jisung sends him a strange look as he walks to sit beside Chan at a table nearby.
“Don’t cry, Lix, you’ll mess up your makeup.” Says Hyunjin as he takes the seat on Felix’s other side. “We can’t have you ruining my art. Although I’m saving the real masterpiece for tomorrow.” He sends the blonde omega a wink.
“I wouldn’t dare, Jinnie.”
✦✦✦
The rehearsal dinner goes well enough, and the morning of the wedding comes a little too quickly. Minho is in his shared apartment with Felix and Hyunjin, kind of having a panic attack in the bathroom. He sneaked out of the apartment to go to the pharmacy half an hour ago while Hyunjin and Felix were running around, steaming clothes and crashing out over a missing lipstick.
Now he’s sitting on the cold tiles of their hideous purple bathroom staring at the two lines on the little plastic stick in his hands. He already knew, but having the physical proof in front of him is just a little too much right now. Minho can’t spend too much time here, though. Today is Felix’s day, and he needs to go pick up the bouquet, call the venue, and make sure the caterer will be there on time, and-
“Min, get out of the bathroom already! I need your help with Lix’s hair.” Hyunjin practically screams from the other side of the door.
“Just a second.”
Minho throws the box and the test into the trash and quickly covers it with some tissue.
“Ok, ok. I’m here. What can I do, Jinnie?”
“Can you get the hairpins in my room in the third drawer of the dresser, please?”
As he walks into Hyunjin’s room, he hears Felix swearing in the kitchen, “Shit, what the fuck do you mean no one picked up Chan’s suit, yet? He was supposed to go get it forty minutes ago!”
The door of their apartment slams closed, meaning the blonde omega probably ran to the guys’ apartment across the hallway.
“I can’t find the pins, Hyun,” Minho shouts after rummaging through the other omega’s messy drawer.
“Oh, it might be in the bathroom then. My bad!” Minho leaves the room and finds Hyunjin going through his just-as-messy bathroom drawer. “Can you believe Chan missed his pick-up time at the tailor shop? I’d think he’d be up since the crack of dawn, making sure everything goes perfectly today. You know, Hyung doesn’t usually sleep in, especially on his wedding day, and- Aha!”
Hyunjin pulls out a box of hairpins from the drawer, and the little plastic box bursts open, spreading a bunch of small pins between the sink and the toilet.
“Shit, can this day stop fucking with us? We have like three hours to be at the venue.” He says while crouching to collect the pins that fell inside the trash can. Just as Minho is going to protest, Hyunjin screams. “Fuck, Minho, look at this!”
He shows Minho the pregnancy test.
“Did you know about this? I can’t believe Felix is pregnant and haven’t told us, what the fuck?”
Minho freezes. He doesn’t know what to say, so he just doesn’t say anything.
“I mean, they’re already getting married, but I really didn’t think this would happen so fast. Do you think Chanie Hyung knows?
Somehow, Minho finds his voice again, although it falters a bit.
“I-I don’t know...?”
“Damn, should we ask Felix? This is pretty crazy. How far along do you think he is? I haven’t noticed anything yet.”
“I’m not sure, but maybe we shouldn’t say anything today. He’s already super stressed with the wedding, and if he hasn’t told us, then there’s probably a reason.”
Minho has no idea why he’s lying right now. He should just come clean and say it’s his. But again, he’s scared and maybe a little embarrassed about it.
“Yeah, you’re right. We’ll talk to him about it later.” Hyunjin tucks the test under the tissues again, and they go back to the living room. “Man, I can’t believe Felix is having a baby! It’s going to be so fun having a cute little pup running around the apartment, don’t you think?”
“Yeah, so fun,” Minho responds half-heartedly and, when Felix comes back mumbling something about Chan having to go to the studio for a last-minute emergency on their wedding day, he sends Minho to pick up the suit, and they don’t speak about tests or pups again.
✦✦✦
“Do not. Tell Felix about this.” Minho and Hyunjin are at Chan and Changbin’s apartment. Jisung is there too. But the oldest alpha is nowhere to be found.
“What do you mean, Changbin? Where is Chanie? We’re leaving in like an hour.” Minho is a little stressed, to say the least. The buffet was going to serve the wrong kind of pasta, the suit was missing the tie, the bouquet had too many sunflowers, and it’s still 10 am. And apparently, the groom is missing. This day is starting to feel like a fucking nightmare.
“He wasn’t here when I woke up, and Ji said he wasn’t at the studio when he left a couple of minutes ago. When I ran to the cafe downstairs, Seungmin said he hadn’t seen him either.” Changbin sounds exasperated, and Jisung is chewing his bottom lip, as if losing Chan is his fault. “I mean, where else could he have gone? I swore he was only programmed to be at like three different locations, and we’ve checked them all!”
“Alright, let's calm down. He wouldn’t have run away. This is Chan Hyung we’re talking about. He wouldn’t leave Felix on their wedding day. There must be a reason why he’s not here.”
Minho was scratching his brain for any clue of where Chan could have gone.
“I don’t know, hyung,” Jisung spoke this time. “Chanie was acting really weird yesterday during dinner. He kept saying that it was fucking crazy that he’d be married tomorrow and that Felix must be insane to want to be with him forever. We thought he was just nervous, but him being gone right now is really strange. What if he actually ran away?”
Hyunjin nudges Minho with his elbow. “Minho hyung, what if this is about you know what?”
Minho is genuinely confused for a second, so he furrows his brow.
Hyunjin whispers in the loudest way possible, “You know… The baby.”
“What baby?” Changbin asks, also confused.
Minho should run and join Chan wherever he is right about now.
“Well, we shouldn’t really tell,” Hyunjin says while Minho says through gritted teeth, “Then don’t.”
“But Felix is pregnant. We just found out today!” The other omega says excitedly.
“My brother is pregnant?” Jisung asks, chocked, while Changbin shouts, “Chan and Lix are having a baby? Fuck yeah!”
“Shut up, Changbin. Felix is just across the hall, and he doesn’t know we know yet. We just found the test in the trash this morning.” Minho should really put a stop to this whole thing right now. But what could he say? ‘Actually, I’m the one who’s pregnant, surprise!’ Right in front of Jisung? He’d rather die, honestly.
“And maybe Chan knows, and that’s exactly why he ran away.” Hyunjin continues.
“Hyung wouldn’t run away because of a baby. He’d love to be a dad.” Changbin adds.
“Yeah, but you know how you alphas are. You act all mature and ready to provide until shit gets real!”
“Hey, hey. Not every alpha-”
“Right, let's focus on where Chanie hyung could actually be right now.” Minho tries to end the argument. “He couldn’t have gone far. Give me ideas.”
“He could be at the venue already?” Changbin offers.
“He isn’t. I called them a couple of minutes ago. Next!”
“He could be halfway to Yemen already and-”
“Hyunjin, this is serious, please.” Minho cuts him off.
“Well, he’s not at either of our apartments, or at work, or at the café. He’s not at the venue or on a plane to Yemen, so I guess that leaves the fountain?”
“The fountain? What fountain?” Minho asks.
“Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah,” Changbin starts jumping in place, “You know the one at the park down the street where he goes to ‘get some air,’ but it’s code to ‘I need to smoke, and Felix can’t know’?”
“Chanie hyung smokes?” Hyunjin asks incredulously.
“No, of course not.” Both alphas say at the same time.
“Whatever, just go get him, both of you. Jinnie and I are going to help Felix finish his makeup, and you guys need to be back WITH THE GROOM in twenty minutes!” Minho starts to push them through the door. “Nothing is going to go wrong today. We’re leaving in fifty minutes.”
“Yes, sir.” Changbin jokes, and they’re off.
✦✦✦
Changbin and Jisung find Chan exactly where they thought he’d be.
The older alpha doesn’t notice them coming until they’re sitting beside him on the narrow bench facing the fountain.
“How did you find me?” Chan asks, and he sounds like he hasn’t spoken in days.
“You’re defaulted to be in like four places,” Jisung says while rubbing his back. “It wasn’t that hard.”
“What are you doing here, hyung?” Changbin uses his soft voice. “We need to leave in less than an hour.”
Chan doesn’t say anything right away. The silence stretches until the older sighs deeply and confesses in almost a whisper. “I don’t think I can do this, guys.”
“What exactly can’t you do, hyung? Because if you’re having second thoughts about Felix, as his older brother, I-”
“No, no. That’s not it. I love him, and I want to marry him. Of course I do. It’s just that.” Chan cuts himself.
“Just what?” Jisung is in older brother mode.
“I don’t know. What if it doesn’t work out, and in a couple of years, he realizes I’m not as perfect as he thought I’d be? And what if married life isn’t what we were expecting? I really don’t think I’d be able to handle it, so it might be better to just not risk it, right?”
“What.” Now it’s Changbin’s turn to be a little baffled. “That’s bullshit, hyung. And you know it is. Felix knows you well. He knows you’re not perfect, and he still chose you. And adjusting to married life is going to be hard, for sure, but if you love each other, you’ll figure it out. So what’s up? Do you know about-” Jisung silently tells him to shut up. “Never mind. What’s the real issue here, hyung?”
They wait until Chan is ready to speak.
“I’m just so scared. Lix texted me this morning saying he couldn’t wait to marry me, and I just- I couldn’t breathe, so I came here for a little fresh air.” He looks down at the pack of cigarettes in his hand, “And I just can’t make myself go back. Lixie has been putting so much work into today, and I don’t think I can be a good mate if I can’t even attend my own wedding without pissing myself first.”
Both Jisung and Changbin are hugging him now. Chan’s salted caramel scent sweetens as his best friends lightly scent him, so the older feels calmer.
“It’s okay to be scared, hyung. What if we take one step at a time? Don’t think about the ‘I do’ right now. You just need to go back to the apartment and get changed right now. Nothing else. Think you can do that?” Jisung puffs some of his citrusy scent and taps his best friend’s back.
“Yeah, I think I can do that.”
“Great, we haven’t told Lix you were gone, so we have to hurry. Or Minho Hyung is going to skin us for being late. And you do not want to mess with him right now. Hyung’s scent has been off for days and-”
“Okay, we got it, Jisungie,” Changbin cuts him laughing, “you’re very in tune with how Min smells at all times, let’s go.”
Jisung’s face gets ten times hotter, but he swears it’s just a very warm day.
✦✦✦
Against all odds, they make it to the venue on time. The ceremony starts in an hour, and the guests are finding their seats and enjoying the open bar.
Minho and Jisung are helping Felix get dressed. The blonde opted for a white cropped suit, white fitted dress pants, and a white tule skirt that only covers half of his lower frame. He looks beautiful. The omega’s long hair is styled up with a couple of pearl pins and flowers. Hyunjin really created a masterpiece.
“I can’t believe I’m getting married.” Felix is looking at himself in the full-body mirror in his suite. He does a little spin in true Felix fashion. “I’m so happy for myself!”
Both Minho and Hyunjin chuckle.
“We’re happy for you too, Lix,” Minho says, and he could cry if he thought too hard about it.
Felix hugs both him and Hyunjin.
“Thank you to you both for helping me. I wouldn’t be able to pull this off without my two best friends. Thank you, really.”
“It’s our pleasure, Lixie,” Hyunjin says and pulls both of them closer.
This close, Minho can smell both their scents very clearly. Felix smells like freshly baked cookies and sunflowers, and Hyunjin smells like mint and roses. He wonders if they can tell Minho’s usual coffee bean and Lavander have been slightly sweetened. Right now, he kind of smells like a very sugary lavender latte.
Just thinking about it makes him slightly panic. He really has no idea how to tell his friends, but he needs to. And soon. Before the lie gets out of hand.
“Ok, ok. No crying yet.” Felix detaches himself from the other two omegas. “I’m going to meet my parents. Can you guys check if my cousin Jeongin is here already? He’s supposed to officiate, but I haven’t heard from him yet.”
“Yeah, of course. We’re on it!” Hyunjin pulls Minho to the hallway, “and they start walking towards the main room where the guests are. “You know, Innie, right? He’s like super-hot!”
“Isn’t he a priest or something?” Minho laughs.
“He’s still in the seminary,” Hyunjin shrugs, “and who said priests can’t be hot.”
✦✦✦
Chan is in his suite, and he’s almost panicking again.
“Jisung, I can’t tie this properly. I’m going to throw up. I can’t do this.”
“Calm down, hyung. Remember what I said. Focus on one thing at a time. Let’s get you dressed and ready first.”
“Okay, then what’s after that?”
Jisung stalls as he’s fixing Chan’s tie.
“Well, getting married, I guess.” He taps Chan’s shoulder twice and takes a step back. “You look great, hyung, you’ll be fine.”
“Yeah, I think I need some air.”
“Don’t run away again, I swear I’ll drag you back here if you do.”
“I’m just going to step outside a little bit. I’ll be at the altar. I promise”
Chan closes the door behind him and takes the pack of cigarettes he bought this morning out of the suit's inside pocket. He swears he doesn’t smoke. Much. He’s just been extremely nervous – for obvious reasons.
While he’s trying to find his lighter, Chan hears Hyunjin and Minho walking his way, so he hides in the small closet behind him. Kind of childish, but he doesn’t want to be caught smoking on his wedding day. Sue him.
“Minho hyung,” He hears Hyunjin speak, although not very loudly. “Do you think people are going to notice Felix is pregnant? That dress shirt is kind of tight.”
“Shut up, Hyun. Someone is going to hear you.”
Chan hears both omegas walking away. He drops the pack on the floor.
Felix is pregnant?