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The boy slowly let the necklace around his throat unclasp, falling into his palm as he stared at the beautiful gem that glittered in silver and bronze,
He glanced at his mother, handing her the beauty, before slowly sliding in between the covers, being almost instantly surrounded by his mother's and some of his own t-shirts,
Dressed in a a thin white t-shirt and fluffy shorts, he basked in the warmth that rose, from around him, from within his body,
A feeling of purity, a daze that seemed just so inviting,
'Let yourself be, baby. Mumma's here to take care of you, Lixie. It'll be alright.'
Seo-na glanced at the clock, a few minutes right before mid-night and she smiled,
Her gaze went back to Felix, who was breathing rather heavily as he tried to hold onto the last few moments of what he called being 'sane' enough, and yet, she watched with an amusing glint as her boy slipped off into the dream, a small smile, almost a drunken look on his face,
She grabbed his hand in between hers, clasping onto it just enough to feel the way, waves of warmth rose from the pit of his stomach, all over his body, till his fingertips,
And that was when she felt it for the first time,
Pure, delightful, sweet scent, freshly baked and taken out from the oven, brownies. She could almost taste the imaginary dessert because of the way its delicious aroma surrounded her throughout,
She sighed, letting herself run her fingers through his blonde soft locks, that surrounded his face and made him look like a fairy to him,
His freckles shone with the sweat that covered his skin, shining, glittering like sparkles and from the way he slowly shivered in her hold, her hand made its way to caress his cheek, finding it getting warm enough for her to pick at the iced-water filled bowl and the cloth strips to the side,
'My good Lixie, you're doing so good, sweetheart.'
As she put on the first strip soaked in cold water, she saw him open his eyes, a dazed look, glossiness over his irises that made her smile,
'My lovely baby.'
She rose from her place, leaning down to whisper it in his ears, her voice soft,
'Happy birthday, brownies.'
And right before backing off, she pressed a soft peck to his cheek, watching as a smile made its way to the omega's face, and he giggled dreamily, holding out hands for her to hold, which she did, ready to do so throughout the rest of the night.
The bell rang and Seo-na carefully got off the couch, walking over to the door and opening it only to gasp in surprise,
Instead of Shin-Nari as she hoped, it was no one but the boys, all of them standing by the doorway, wearing funny hats and furry scarves, not to mention the party poppers in their hold and the cake in Jeongin's hand who stood at the front,
All of them frowned,
'Auntie, where's Lix?'
And blood drained from her face like a stone dropping at the pit of her stomach she watched Jeongin's eyes widen once he sniffed the scent covering her and surrounding all of the houses,
'It smells like brownies, did Felix hyung bake some? We actually wanted to surprise him, can you call him here so we can you know to surprise him-'
'It's not the scent of brownies- I mean it is but not because Lix is baking them...'
Seo-na fumbled with the right words, not knowing what to say except she knew that her son was far too comfortable enough to hide it from these boys, and considering Jeongin, a fellow omega was a part of the group, she couldn't think of anything going wrong.
She sighed, moving to a side and letting them enter, which they did, slow tip-toeing steps that actually made her forget everything and chuckle for a moment,
They looked like kids. To her, they did. Just like her own son.
'Settle down, please.'
They did, Jeongin putting the cake on the table up in front, and the rest putting aside their props,
'Well, I'm sure you didn't know it but it's not Felix's fault, neither did he want to hide it by himself, I guess it's just mother instincts, from whatever has happened before, I told him to wear it.'
Changbin was the first one to question it,
'What do you mean?'
Seo-na didn't say anything, rather just reached in the pocket of her cardigan and brought out the necklace, holding it with the chain for everyone to see,
It took a while but Jeongin gasped,
'It's the moonstone. To hide scents and-'
'And mix in within the crowds and hide one's true rank.'
More silence followed the statement and it was only when Hyunjin bit his lip,
'Is it what I think it is?'
Seo-na nodded, holding onto the necklace as she breathed out the words,
'Lixie is an omega. The reason why I call him brownies is not only because of the dessert he bakes but because of his scent. I told him to keep it hidden since we weren't in a familiar setting and his scent was strong enough to just seep through the nicks and corners and I was afraid it'll attract the wrong people like it had done...before in the past.'
Some of them looked rather shocked, except Changbin who had a betrayal look on his face, Jeongin, who just nodded along as if he had an idea and Chan was neutral, expressionless.
'Why now-like why let his scent out-'-Jisung muttered in a slow voice as if he was unsure of his words,
'Because along with it being his birthday, as it happens, it's his heat as well.'
They panicked, the alphas especially, Minho already halfway standing up to leave it seemed except Seo-na chuckled and shook her head,
'Since Lixie doesn't have any potential lover or well a mate for that cause, it's just a warm heat that comes with short fevers and a lot more childish antics. You can relax, I'm sure my omega boy won't mind you. He hasn't ever since he started getting close to all of you.
Trust me, he told me how he wished for all of you to know but his insecurities took the best of him and his anxiety left him shaking at the thought. Do you...either of you mind it?'
'Absolutely not. Among us, ranks don't matter auntie.'-Chan was the one to speak this time, the others nodding immediately,
'I kind of had an idea with the cuddling me and Lix hyung did a week ago, I felt as if we were connected in a way more than brothers and I guess it sums it all up now.'-Jeongin muttered more to himself than to the others.
Seo-na smiled, nodding slightly,
'I'm really thankful for the heavens to send him some good friends, who can be his family after I'm gone-'
'Don't say that, aunt. I'm sure Lix would literally cry at the thought, but as it goes, you can rest assured that he's a part of our group, a part of our pack what we call it and we'll make sure he's alright.'-Changbin spoke, smiling slightly.
'Well we wanted to surprise him but we'll just leave and return when he's alright?'-Minho questioned whilst glancing at the others except Seo-na shook her head,
Standing up with a smile,
'I'm sure Lix won't mind it, do you guys wanna meet him?'
At her words, they truly seemed as if she was joking, looking at her with wide eyes which only made her chuckle,
'Trust me, for all I can say, it'll be you who'll mind him being a completely silent little kid.'
'What's hyung like during his heats? I'm really the one to throw tantrums frankly.'-Jeongin huffed, standing up already at the thought of meeting another omega,
Seo-na hummed, 'He's really shy...and he doesn't talk. Doesn't say a word except for a few whines here and there and some short giggles. He's always smiling until he's down with a fever and loves to eat sweets. More so, be fed. Not to mention, he's kinda cuter than he is in general?'
'More cuteness of Lix will end me, to be honest.'-Jisung sighed, dramatically leaning against Minho who chuckled,
'You mean, he's cuter in his heat than he is when he's normal- man I'm not sure if I'm ready to take another heart attack.'-Changbin leaned against Chan who shook him off, smiling at the picture that formed in his head,
'Stop fantasizing.'-Changbin whispered lightly, backing off with a signature smirk except it vanished when the alpha glared down at him,
'Alright alright, dream on.'
'So, you wanna come see him? You can wish him as well, he won't say anything but I'm sure he'll like to have his best friends or well his second family as he calls you all.'-Seo-na smiled at their flushed reactions before walking towards Felix's door,
They immediately sensed the peak in the scent of brownies, sweet and comforting, and for once they waited as the woman opened the door,
'Hey Lixie, look who's here love?'
One by one, behind Jeongin, the boys entered the room, immediately struck with the strong aroma that wafted through the air, up their nostrils leaving them feeling rather light-headed,
Jeongin was the first one to pull them out of their dazed heads, with his squeal,
'Hey Lix hyung-oh my god, you're so beautiful-happy birthday!'
'You can hug him if you want, but first, let's see his reaction.'
Glancing at the omega, who was lying curled up on the bed, between the nest and slowly humming along with the music playing on the device Seo-na had put on the bedside table,
The blonde omega eventually looked up, at Jeongin who was enamored at the sight immediately,
Big glossy eyes, slightly flushed cheeks, and out straight from the galaxy, star-like freckles glittering under whatever was turned on of the fairy lights.
The omega looked a little bit alerted, staring at everyone one by one until his gaze landed on his mother and he whined, lips already wobbling, which made the others bite their lips to hold in their coos,
'Little sunshine, they're you're friends, didn't you miss them, hmm? They're here to wish you a happy birthday, they even brought cake-'
At the mention of a particular dessert, the boy perked up, glancing at their hands and Jisung was quick to act, running out of the room only to return seconds later with the cake,
The others followed his actions, running back and getting the props until Chan carefully lit the candles over the cake and they took a few steps further ahead, only to hold the cake in front of the omega's face who stared at the candle, the glow highlining his features making him look like an angel,
Seo-na smiled watching her boy turn to look at her and she nodded before he turned over and quickly settled straighter, joining his hands in a praying pose and seconds later blowing out the candles,
The omega flinched when the party poppers went off, and Changbin and Minho glanced at each other for a second, worrying it was over the top,
That was until they heard giggles,
Purely resembling music, they watched the boy laugh, and shake his head like a chick drenched in water to let his fluffy blonde locks out of the way, only to glance back at his mother with big eyes,
Fuck, their hearts were merely seconds away from bursting.
Seo-na laughed, 'I'll cut the cake and bring it in plates, talk with your friends, hmm?'
Felix nodded seeming hyper suddenly but as Seo-na took hold of the cake, leaving the room, the boy suddenly looked at the others, all of them were giving him those heart eyes looks and it made him squeal slightly as he hid in his nest,
Jeongin was the first to bust in UwUs, collapsing beside the omega, and when he glanced for Felix's reaction, the male simply stared at him, not saying anything.
Thinking the physical contact wasn't minded, Jeongin let himself bask in the scent of brownies, finding himself going light-headed at the comfort and warmth of Felix's nest.
'Say angel, do you mind if we sit down as well?'
Felix looked up to Hyunjin, shaking his head slightly as he shifted over, and watched as gradually one by one all of them settled around him.
With round eyes and blonde locks framing his face, the boy looked absolutely adorable in their eyes but they had to bite back down their coos in order to not scare him.
Jeongin had shuffled rather closer to the omega and was only inches away from him,
They watched as Felix stared at Jeongin, who had his own scent of freshness after a pleasing rain completely let out,
It was only seconds later that the omega's nose twitched ever so lightly and before they knew it, the omega was leaning against Jeongin, purring in delight when the younger held him back as well.
'Okay, I don't know about you guys but I just can't think of being alive after seeing such an angelic sight- am I in heaven?'-Jisung spoke, his words soft despite the excitement lingering in them,
'If you are, then we're all as well. Damn it man-'-Changbin spoke,
Upon his words, however, the omega looked up from Jeongin's hug and beamed at him, leaving him to clutch the shoulder of the person beside him who turned out to be Minho,
The purple-head glared at the male, clicking his tongue which did scare Changbin slightly except giggles broke them out of the moment and they watched Felix giggle whilst looking away from them and focusing on Hyunjin who was wiping off his fake tears and gasping dramatically,
'An angel has ascended from the heavens to bestow us in his presence- oh my god!'
'Like when the devil sent you by himself?' -Seungmin altered in between immediately shifting away when the beta reached out to smack him,
'I think Lix hyung likes my scent.'-Jeongin whispered after a while as he watched Felix slowly shake his head as if trying not to give in to the scent and possibly sleep,
'He's cute. Frickin' adorable. All the adjectives you could count in and I swear it's hurting my heart at this point, physically.'
Felix suddenly looked up, straight at Changbin who looked taken aback by the boy's gaze except they watched as Felix's lower lip wobbled,
'No-no, Lix he was kidding. You didn't hurt him, really. He likes to joke like that-'
Changbin nodded to Chan's words, looking truly scared for once, except Felix suddenly fixed his gaze on Chan and then nodded slowly,
The boy seemed to be slipping in and out of his sub-space daze and it truly made him adorable,
Seo-na entered the room with a tray holding plates with cake slices and forks in them and she put it in the center of the now circle of boys, before ruffling Felix's hair who smiled at the touch and leaned more against her,
'Enjoying ourselves, hmm?'-she asked the boy who hummed as a reply before opening his mouth and looking at her with beady eyes that carried everything but malice,
'My sunshine wanna be fed, hmm? Be fed-you will.'
As she fed the boy small bites of the dessert, he hummed leaning against whoever was near him, this once it being Minho, and since they were in a circle, the others eating as well, it went unnoticed at first.
The purple-haired male surely stiffened for once except he was quick to relax, finding the omega already gazing at him as he looked up from his place,
Minho raised his eyebrows as if asking what Felix was implying but the boy simply gave him a grin and poked his cheek,
The others looked up after listening to Hyunjin's gasp and found a staring contest going on between the alpha and the omega,
They waited for reaction and it wasn't long before Minho poked the boy back on his cheek, who huffed but continued to poke him and the second moment, the blonde male was laughing loudly as he was tickled by the purple-head.
'Never failing the big cat and little kitten dynamic.'-Jisung only shook his head, leaning back against Seungmin as he captured the moment,
They watched Felix breathing heavily as Minho chuckled and pushed him off, letting the omega roll off to the other side and glance up from his position whilst lying on his back, up at Chan's face,
He beamed once more, getting a dimpled smile in return, and immediately sat up, surprising everyone as he hugged the alpha round the neck, wrapping himself around Chan quite in a way it seemed he was the smallest to exist ever,
'Fuck-'
'I'm not-'
'You're-'
'I'm dying-'
'Chan hyung-'
'Chan hyung broke, ya'll.'-Jisung mentioned once more, noticing the way the alpha's hands fell to his sides, eyes focused on Felix who shifted in his lap before resting against him completely, and Chan was visibly short-circuiting.
'You're legit a goner, hyung.'-Minho spoke, flicking Chan's forehead lightly, watching as the black-haired male did something that resembled a, 'Huh?' before holding onto Felix's waist.
Considering the fact that despite his sanity leaving him, Chan could feel the way Felix's shirt was particularly wet, his back damp as if one wore clothes directly after a bath without wiping off the excess water on the skin.
He frowned, feeling for the boy's forehead before realizing that Felix was quite nearly burning.
'Is something wrong?'-the omega's mother entered, having carried the empty plates back to the kitchen,
Chan nodded, despite a very much visible flush on his pale skin considering he had the omega sticking up to him, he spoke of the certainty of Felix having a fever,
'It's a warm heat, hyung. It happens with me as well, don't worry.'
'Right. Just lay him down and I'll put the cold-water strips. He might need to change out of the shirt though, it's particularly damp in sweat.'
Chan nodded, trying to coax the omega to lay down except it seemed Felix had entered a quiet daze, slightly opened eyes, seemingly unfocused as Chan lay him down.
'Seems like someone doesn't wanna let go.'-Changbin teased, Chan missing out on an opportunity to glare at the male for Felix seemed to be clutching onto his jacket rather tightly.
It was one of those jeans jackets, he had specifically changed the usual black outfit to a denim one today since he was supposed to be surprising the 'beta' or well the omega, however, considering the present moment-
'He seems to like your scent, Chan.'-Seo-na spoke, watching with a fond smile as Felix refused to let go of the male's jean jacket, having clutched them in his fists.
Chan heard the others go off in the form of 'oo's' which made him roll his eyes, nevertheless the affection didn't leave him as he caught hold of Felix's wrists, the boy looking right at him which made Chan want to pepper his face with feathery kisses, even those eyes which beckoned his wolf to cover the omega totally and shield him from the world,
As soon as he was aware that the boy's grip had loosened, he smiled, taking off his jean jacket and merely remaining in the white tee he wore previously, tucked in his denims.
He put the jacket beside Felix, who clutched onto it almost immediately and it was truly a sight to see as the boy smiled a dreamy smile, hair falling all over his face, except he perked up and like a kitten with ears focused looked at the others.
Felix continued to stare, blinking slowly, and Chan as if something clicked right in the spot realized what the boy meant-
'I think he wants all of our scents...in his nest.'
Their hearts went warm at the fact that the omega trusted them enough, and it wasn't long before Minho was cursing just loud enough for them to hear as he took off his jumper, remaining in a t-shirt, and put the jumper along with several other clothes that surrounded Felix.
The others quickly followed the suit, Jisung chuckling whilst wriggling his eyebrows towards his boyfriend, as he took off his hoodie.
Hyunjin took off his cardigan as well, Seungmin following along with Changbin who was left in a mere vest, and muttered of fetching something to wear from his apartment across.
'You can tend to him, Auntie, we'll just stay outside.'
'Innie, you can stay, you know that right?'-Hyunjin spoke to the younger, who was solely looking sad at the fact of leaving.
To his words, Jeongin looked at Seo-na with hope, and seeing the smile on her face, the boy grinned widely.
'We'll just sit outside, we aren't leaving just yet.'-Jisung spoke, louder so that the omega who was lying basking in the scents surrounding him hummed, almost a dream-like, which made the rest chuckle.
Chan who was about to follow the others, halted feeling a grip on his wrist and staring down, he saw Felix looking at him, blinking slowly, nearly falling asleep.
Chan noticed Seo-na leaving towards the supposed bathroom to fetch towels, and since Jeongin had gone out to fetch something to drink, he leaned down quickly, pressing a soft kiss to Felix's forehead, the action doing things to his own self,
The whiff of brownies was stronger up close, and he couldn't stop himself from pecking the boy's eyelids along with the tip of his nose which was flushed a slight red.
'I'm not leaving, yeah? I'm just outside, get well soon, baby.'
With that, he petted the boy's hair, quietly tip-toeing outside, passing an embarrassed smile to a smirking Jeongin, before coming to face the others who were settled in the living room.
Jeongin and Seo-na emerged from the boy's room approximately half an hour later, the scent of brownies basically fending off them as if they had been submerged themselves in the particular scent,
Jeongin was flush, smiling rather wide and seeming kinda lazy as he cuddled up to Seungmin's side,
'You ought to have seen Lixie hyung when Auntie changed him, he wasn't ready to leave Chan hyung's jacket and whined when he could wear it. I'd say give him your t-shirts Chan hyung.'-the boy teased, the others breaking out into chuckles whilst Changbin looked at Chan with a knowing smirk.
The alpha merely huffed, standing up and rubbing at his ears as he walked over to the kitchen finding Seo-na chopping vegetables,
'What are you doing, aunt?'
'Just call me, mother, Chan. Didn't I tell you already?'
Chan smiled sheepishly, nodding.
'I'm making something to eat for all of us. You guys literally chose midnight to surprise Felix, hmm?'
'We thought it'd be special.'
'It is special, indeed. Thank you for...everything.'
Chan watched her hands slow down as she sighed,
'Felix wanted to tell you, out of everyone but he just wasn't sure how to come up with it. I was the one who told him to wear the necklace at first because of certain things that went downhill a few years ago.'
'It's really alright, you don't have to bother. I understand what Felix was thinking and besides I don't really care about the ranks, Mother.'
Seo-na smiled softly.
'Is he alright now?'
'Yes. He's fast asleep though I know he'll wake up in a few hours. What about you guys, won't you want to sleep?'
'Uh...I'm not sure about the others right now. They all seem too excited to sleep just yet.'
'Then let's eat, an early breakfast while it's still night and you all can take naps later, there are beddings all over the place.'
'I think you should rest as well, Mother. Just hold on a second-'
Chan disappeared leaving Seo-na to herself who waited whilst the boy reappeared with the others,
'We'll help you in making breakfast!'-Jisung perked up, Minho pulling him away by the nape,
'I'll do it. You guys are probably going to turn the kitchen into a disaster.'-the male said.
And so, with Hyunjin and Jeongin entertaining Seo-na with stories and literal incidents that made no sense, Minho, Seungmin and Chan focused on making up breakfast, the latter two doing nothing else but following the purple-headed male's words since he knew the best out of all of them. Changbin had gone to take out the mattresses with Jisung for them to rest on, from his own apartment.
A certain omega meanwhile, lay surrounded by the scents of people very much close and familiar to his heart, a smile on his lips and the air-conditioning turned just right up to make the sweat leave his figure and his body to feel the right warm and comfortable.
He dreamt of the sweet things, simple yet sweet, of a certain black-haired male and his jacket clutched right in his hold-
The time when he used to be the loneliest just a year ago, was no longer there. And as he slept away with the worries leaving his self once and for all, the birthday song echoed in his head, the face-less angels carrying cakes for him, meeting bunnies and little kittens on his way to dream-land, where the greenery was abundant sunshine like a hug, and freedom as far as eyes could see.
He truly was at peace, happy.
...