Shot in the dark (but I'll make it)
Suho/Chen, 9690, NC17
To be honest, Jongdae didn’t think that finding his mate would be this difficult. wolf!au
A/N: Originally written here.
So, this is it. This is the city.
Jongdae smiles to himself as he takes a step forward, away from his past and into his bright future. Sadly, his future is a bit too bright-blindingly so-and actually really painful. Jongdae yips a few seconds too late and retreats back into the safety of the forest, diving into a bush and burying his paws in the cool soil. Shoes. He needs shoes.
Upon shifting onto two legs and pulling on the clothes he had thrown into the knapsack he has been carrying on his back, Jongdae feels a lot more prepared. This time, when he steps onto the searingly hot black surface, his feet do not smart at the action. His smile returns. He’s got this.
As Jongdae sniffs the air carefully, he goes over the plan. Walk into the city, find his mate, and then take her-or him, Jongdae doesn’t mind really. It’s his mate!-back home with him. They’ll have pups-or, if it does turn out to be a he, they can look after others’ pups. Jongdae’s pack is full of very agreeable wolves-and live happily ever after! Man, he is so pumped. The wind changes direction and Jongdae seizes. There! There it is!
He almost shifts right then and there to go bounding after the scent, but contains himself. The wolves in the city are very civilized-self-centered was the word Jongdae’s father had used, but then one of the betas had hit him so Jongdae thinks that civilized is a better word-and hardly ever turn. Not even during a full moon, which impresses Jongdae to no end. His mate is going to be the most sophisticated person out there. Jongdae is brimming with pride and he hasn’t even met the wolf yet.
He follows the scent away from the forest and everything he knows, through crowded streets, clinging to the aroma like a lifeline. His heightened senses are the same no matter the form he takes, but he still feels the impulse to shift crawling under his skin and it’s as prominent as the adrenaline coursing through his veins. Jongdae tries his best to stay focused, smile broadening when the scent becomes stronger, revealing itself a little more with every twist and turn, inviting him in with warm hints of nutmeg and pine along with something entirely different; something that can only come from its owner.
Jongdae’s mate smells like home.
His nose leads him across a few more stretches of black, until Jongdae has to stop in front of a pair of double glass doors. He jumps in place. This is it.
With great fanfare, he bursts through the doors, the almost empty knapsack on his back bouncing happily with each step. The sun is at his back, lightening the path ahead of him and guiding his way. Jongdae sweeps past the large entrance, not sparing a glance for the incredibly high ceiling or intricate wall designs. He ends up in a box and thinks he hears a woman’s voice call after him, but he can’t be sure because two metal walls slide closed in front of him and Jongdae is trapped in this box. His eyes wander, and he finds a series of buttons on the panel in front of him. They brighten as he presses them, so naturally he hits them all, grinning when the metal finally gives way.
Before he can disembark, his nose gives an involuntary twitch and his face screws up in response. His mate isn’t here. He stays inside the box as the walls slide shut and frowns. Well, what now? When the large panels open again, the scenery is different. Jongdae is confused, but excited by this new game. Throughout his time spent in the box, a few others step inside with him, but aren’t as entertained with the game as Jongdae. He chalks it up to their having lived in the city for a while, and thus having lost part of their spirit. They no longer know what fun is. Jongdae hopes his mate isn’t like them.
When the metal parts for the umpteenth time, Jongdae’s hands fist in the material of his borrowed shirt. The scent is stronger, so much stronger, and Jongdae practically crumples then and there. Instead, he musters up his strength and steps out of the box, following the heady scent down a narrow hallway lined with fake plants, which confuses Jongdae but he doesn’t have time to ponder the fact that people would craft plants out of synthetic material instead of simply caring for a seed. Except he’s not the best multi-tasker so as he’s contemplating the farming skill of city wolves, he isn’t paying attention to where he is going so he walks head-first into a door with a muted thud. Jongdae covers his injured nose long enough to make sure it isn’t a serious wound, then gingerly opens the door and steps inside.
There is only one person in the room, a skinny man who is looking at Jongdae with a mix of confusion and annoyance. Jongdae decides to get out of his hair as soon as possible and takes another whiff of the air.
Wow.
The scent is almost overpowering. Not because it’s so close-practically within his reach-but because it belongs to an alpha. God. Jongdae’s mate is an alpha. He takes a minute to let it sink in, and then his head snaps to the origin of the scent. Another door is almost hidden in the corner of the room, and that is where his nose is leading him. Jongdae practically races forward, peripheral vision catching the movement of the skinny man jumping out of his seat and reaching for him, but Jongdae’s already in the much larger room. The only man inside, seated behind a huge winding desk, stands.
He’s not large. He’s probably the same size as the man behind the desk. Really, the man doesn’t have any of the common physical traits of an alpha, but his status is clear. It radiates off of him, and is obvious in the way he holds himself: head high, shoulders squared, and face impassive. On top of that, he’s gorgeous. From his gently styled dark hair to his soft features and wow. Jongdae’s in love with him already. But that’s okay! Because they’re mates and this is how it’s supposed to work, even if Jongdae wasn’t quite ready for someone so breathtaking. His mate coughs and Jongdae suddenly realizes he’s just been staring at the man like an idiot. He colors. How embarrassing. He should introduce himself.
“Hi, I’m Kim Jongdae!” He greets by way of introduction. “And I’m your mate!”
His mate-the golden bar on his desk reads Kim Joonmyun-cocks an eyebrow and his previously inquisitive eyes close off, like the metal panels in the box. “Oh, are you?” He makes a show of taking an experimental sniff and nods. “You smell like it.” He collapses back into his large chair, which only serves to make him seem more unapproachable. “So, how much?”
“I-I’m sorry?” Jongdae is confused. Perhaps mates in the city have some sort of protocol that he’s missing out on. He should’ve hung around the streets a bit longer to observe the city wolves and their tendencies, but he couldn’t help himself as soon as he caught a hint of his mate. He’s regretting the missed opportunity now. Just a bit. Jongdae turns towards the skinny man for help, but the man is blocking the doorway with his scrawny body, speaking into a rectangular contraption, too low to make out his words. He turns back to face his mate and fights the urge to cower. This is his mate, dammit, not some run of the mill alpha who’s trying to encroach on his territory. Jongdae feels the need to speak again; he thinks Kim Joonmyun is waiting for something. “I don’t understand what you mean.”
His mate sighs. “Yes, of course you don’t.” He seats himself back in the large chair and shoots skinny boy a hard look. “Sehun, whenever you’re ready.”
“They’re on their way,” skinny boy reports back and Jongdae feels hopelessly lost.
“Jongdae, was it?” Joonmyun asks in a smooth voice that belies no emotion and Jongdae nods eagerly. “We have less than a minute to settle this. If you would please tell me how much you came here for, I will gladly hand it to you in cash and you can drop the facade and walk out of here of your own accord. If not, I’ll have to forcibly remove you.” He taps his fingers on his desk and rests his head on his hand, elbow resting on the edge of polished wood. “So, what’ll it be, love?” He sneers the term and if Jongdae had his tail right now, it would be between his legs.
With a rising sense of dread, he realizes that the man isn’t indifferent, he’s irritated and he’s not even trying to hide it. Jongdae swallows around the large lump in his throat and speaks. “Money? I don’t want any money. I just want you.” He nervously chews on his bottom lip, hands shaking at his sides. “You’re my mate,” he tries again because it’s the best argument he has. Everything that he knows screams that it should be the only argument he needs. The look his mate is giving him disagrees.
“That’s too bad,” he says, but he doesn’t sound like he means it. He nods to the skinny man and he steps away from the door just as it opens and two brawny men march inside. “I want him out of here,” Joonmyun orders, pointing at the man across from him.
Jongdae whimpers as two meaty hands grab his arms, fingers digging into his skin, and he's lifted off the ground. He looks away from Joonmyun, who is glaring at him, and tries for the skinny man by the door. He hangs his head when he finds that he, too, is sending Jongdae a heated glare.
Jongdae goes limp and allows himself to be dragged out, ignoring the now bittersweet scent that is growing weaker and weaker.
As soon as the doors close, Joonmyun slumps, dropping his head onto the cool wooden table. "Sehun."
The secretary nods apologetically, biting his lip. "I'm so sorry. He ran in before I could even say anything."
Joonmyun raises his head, waving his hand dismissively. "It's fine," he sighs, "Just. Make sure it doesn't happen again." He fixes the younger man with a weak gaze. "Please."
Sehun nods, features hard, and heads back to his desk, closing the door behind him.
-
Jongdae is thrown onto the concrete unceremoniously and lands with a yelp.
"Refrain from disturbing Mr. Kim at work again," the taller of the two says, "This is just a warning. Next time the consequences will be far worse."
Jongdae watches as both of the suited men head back into the building. He realizes his arms are shaking and unsteadily pushes himself up. He walks until he's on the border of the city and forest, and can barely even smell his mate. He sits down and wonders what he's to do now. Heading home is out of the question. The only lone wolves he knows are those who have had their other halves pass away. He can't go back empty-handed. So, he has to find out how to convince this Kim Joonmyun that they are meant to be. Slim stick in hand, he ponders the reasons why his mate didn't believe him. He should be able to go on from there. Perhaps the man has never heard of mates? Jongdae remembers the sarcastic sneer and sadly shakes his head. No, the man definitely knew what Jongdae was claiming to be. He draws a large X in the dirt and tries again. He can't think of any other reasons. Jongdae is perplexed, he means, who wouldn't want him? He's gorgeous, a great hunter, he knows the forest like his hand and-oh. Of course.
His mate is a city wolf. Jongdae is most definitely not. The man must think Jongdae would make an awful mate, being a big-city alpha and all. Well Jongdae will show him. He can be a city wolf too, if he wants. A damn good one. It’ll be easy. Jongdae is a natural at everything. Pleased with his conclusion, he draws out a rough plan in the dirt, starting with item number one: Get a fancy city job.
Jongdae scouts the park beside the line of comforting trees for jobs. Thanks to his superior nose, he sniffs out a day-old paper from a metal can and discovers a neat little column labeled Jobs. Perfect. He rolls it up and slides it into his backpack, heading for the first location, right on Main Street.
He finds the building without trouble. He heads in, informs the kind woman at the front desk that he's here for the open position, and is shown into a small room. His-hopefully-future boss is a portly, balding man, and gives Jongdae a tight, business smile before beginning an unwanted interrogation.
"What kind of skills do you have to offer, Mr. Kim?"
"Well," Jongdae begins, not wanting to brag, "one time I took down an entire boar by myself."
From the man's horrified expression, Jongdae remembers that not everyone that lives in the city is a wolf, and those that do keep it secret. He is given a short rejection speech and shown to the door. Jongdae heads out of the room and to the front door by himself, where the receptionist-who is a wolf-is waiting, worriedly wringing her hands. At her kind suggestion, Jongdae crosses the other two Animal Humane Societies looking for employees off his list. For a moment, he wishes that this woman was his mate, but then he remembers that his mate is a gorgeous alpha and he quickly thanks her before heading to the next location.
Jongdae had no idea that so many people lived in the city. The population seems to be predominantly human with a few wolves here and there. He's never felt further from home.
Out of the next five jobs he tries for-all of which include an unnecessary series of questions that include strange words like 'college' and years spent in the 'workforce.' Jongdae gets out of them by staring at his interrogator until he or she coughs and moves on-only once does meet another wolf. He explains his predicament to the man and with an empathetic pat on the back; he tells Jongdae that a software company just isn't the right place for him.
After a little bit more walking, Jongdae finds himself in a much busier area, full of noisy, chuffing cars and impatient workers. He ambles his way through the crowd until he is beneath the overhang of a large building-not far from his mate's; he can pick up the scent clearly from where he stands-and reads the sign above him. New Age Insurance. Sounds promising. Sounds like something he can brag about.
Jongdae pulls out his paper and smiles when he finds the business listed-though they're looking for 'interns' and Jongdae has no idea what that means. He takes a deep breath, pushes out his chest, and waltzes into the building.
He shows the paper to the inquisitive woman at the front desk and she points him down the halfway and gives his outfit an odd look. Jongdae tries to ignore it as he heads down the hall and takes the first left, but he's a little shaken. He had thought a t-shirt and jeans would be plenty normal for a city dweller, but maybe he was mistaken. Maybe it was the clothes that had made Kim Joonmyun decide he wasn't the right sort of mate.
After giving his name to a bespectacled worker, Jongdae takes a seat among a few dozen well-dressed men and women and waits. He catches onto the pattern quickly. A name is called, the person enters into one of the three rooms looking spectacularly anxious, and then they return about twenty minutes later, crushed and dejected, slouching as they exit and receive a card from the worker with the glasses.
When Jongdae's name is called, he stands and enters the room on the right, and finds a cozy little place with a desk, two chairs, and a lamp in the corner. It's reminiscent of a cave and Jongdae happily takes the chair across from the man in the room when invited to do so.
"So, Kim Jongdae, this will be a short interview. I do not want to see your resume or any recommendations, I will just ask you a series of questions and that will be all," the man says in a droll tone. Jongdae opens his mouth to agree to the task, but then the man adds in a much chipper tone, "This is exciting. We don't get many wolves."
Jongdae immediately gasps, propelling himself to the edge of his seat. "You're a wolf, too?" The man certainly doesn't look it, but then again, neither had the previous two city wolves.
"Sure am," the man says with a grin. "So, Jongdae, tell me what you think you have to offer for our firm."
Jongdae honestly has nothing to offer. But he really needs this job. It's one of the last ones on the list. "I really need this job."
The man quirks a brow. "Um-"
Jongdae doesn't waste a second, doesn't want to be rejected before he tells his story. "I'm not a city wolf. I came here to find my mate and I did but he's a little... he didn't seem very happy with me. So! I thought if I could land a fancy city job, he would decide that I we make a good pair and then we will mate and it will be great.” Jongdae takes in a lungful of air, having said everything in one breath. “So I need this job. Please.”
The man blinks. “You’re a wolf from the woods?”
Jongdae nods.
“How far away?” He leans forward on his desk, pen and paper pushed aside.
“About a day.”
The man taps idly on his desk, drawing his lip into his mouth. He seems to be considering something for a moment, and then abruptly picks up a black device on his desk. “Hello? Yes, I want to speak to whoever is on duty at the moment.” Jongdae watches, confused, as the man turns to face the wall and continues talking to himself. “Yes, how many employees were we looking for? Six? Change it to five.” He sets the device back down and holds a hand out to Jongdae. “Welcome to New Age Insurance. Let me show you around.”
Jongdae gingerly shakes the proffered hand and follows the man out of the room. Curious eyes follow them as Jongdae is led back down the hall and into a box.
“I apologize for being so brusque,” the man begins, and Jongdae looks up to see an easy grin that he subconsciously reciprocates, “I am just really, really into wolves from the woods. I’ve never met one before. Do you like it here? What did you eat? Did you actually bathe in rivers?” He clears his throat. “Sorry, we can talk about that later.”
The doors open and Jongdae is led past hallways that look somewhat like those from his mates’ place of work and into a large room at the end of the hall furnished with a couch, two chairs, and a desk. The man takes a seat behind the desk and invites Jongdae to sit as well with a sweep of his hand. Cautiously, Jongdae sets himself on the couch, close to the door.
“We were looking for college students. It’s good for PR and all that. But no one will mind that there are five instead of six. Besides, nobody argues with the CFO." His eyes widen and he backtracks when Jongdae doesn't even crack a smile. "But don't let that scare you! I'm really just a normal worker like everyone else!"
Jongdae blinks. He has no idea what a CFO is.
"So, it's just an internship, not anything big but I’m sure if you demonstrate good work, we might ask you to stay.” The man smiles. “Do you have any questions? If not, I can introduce you to your supervisor and you can start straight away.”
Jongdae immediately sits straight up in his seat. A job! “Start now!” He almost shouts, coloring when the man laughs.
“Okay, let’s get to it. You said your name was Kim Jongdae, correct?” He asks and Jongdae nods with a quick jerk of his head. The man holds out his hand. “I’m Park Chanyeol. Now, let’s get you started.”
-
Jongdae’s supervisor is not a wolf. Chanyeol informs him of this right before they meet. She is very kind nonetheless, laughing when Chanyeol lowers his voice to tell her that he’d decided to hire one of the interns without discussing the matter with anyone else. After pursing her lips to hide her laughter, she holds a finger to her lips and promises not to tell anyone. With a sigh of relief, Chanyeol leaves and it’s just Jongdae and the woman. She smiles at him and bids him to follow as she heads into a room.
Jinah-that’s her name-is nice, if a little judgmental when Jongdae admits he has no idea how to make coffee. He learns that, as an intern, he is expected to make copies of paper and deliver coffee to anyone that asks. It sounds a bit like servitude. When he says that aloud, Jinah laughs and hands him a cookie.
Jongdae gets started right away. He marvels silently as a monstrous white machine spits out identical sheets of paper when he presses a button, and frowns in disappointment when the men and women he hands coffee to spit out the drink immediately.
A little while later, Jinah appears to show him how to clean the filter. Even later, she returns to show him the difference between the salt and sugar containers with a small smile.
Chanyeol doesn’t return until the orders for coffees and copies have died down.
“You’re still here.”
Jongdae looks up from where he’s restacking the pile of cups he knocked over earlier in the day. He’d just knocked them back over because he’s feeling incredibly restless. Though, he frowns at the statement. “Where else would I be?”
“Everyone else has already left,” Chanyeol explains, stepping into the room. “I thought you would have gone home by now. Or wherever you’re staying. Hotel?”
Jongdae sets down the cup he’s holding and frowns. “I, um, didn’t think that far ahead.” Mostly because he’d thought he would whisk his mate off his or her feet and he would spend the night with his other half. But. That’s not really a viable option at the moment.
“You don’t have a place to stay?”
The voice comes from right behind Jongdae and he jumps. “Uh. No?”
Chanyeol grabs his arm. “You have to stay with me. The city gets bad at night and I couldn’t live with myself if I left you by yourself.” He drops his arm and smiles apologetically. “Of course, only if you want to come.”
He doesn’t have much of a choice. And despite how overwhelmingly… enthusiastic Chanyeol is, he seems like a genuinely nice person. He’s a wolf, too, and Jongdae’s already starting to miss his pack. “If you’ll have me, I think I would like to stay with you.”
With a loud cheer, Chanyeol links their arms together. “My mate will love you,” he promises, leading them both out of the room, “he adores surprises.”
-
Jongdae does not think Chanyeol knows what his mate likes at all. They’re sitting on the couch talking about what it’s like living in the woods-Chanyeol finds it interesting to no end and Jongdae doesn’t mind answering his many questions-when the door opens and a man steps inside. He takes one look at the two on the couch and stills.
“Chanyeol,” he snaps, nose wrinkling, “What did I tell you about bringing in strays?”
Jongdae is frozen in fear, but Chanyeol leaps up and pulls the smaller man into a hug. “Kyungsoo, light of my life, you have returned!” The man in his embrace grunts in answer. “His name is Jongdae and he’s from the woods. I told him he could stay here.”
Chanyeol’s mate ducks out of the bear hug and pats himself down. He sighs. “You haven’t started dinner yet, have you?” The taller man stares at the ground in lieu of a reply. Kyungsoo sighs. “I’ll order out then. Give me a minute to change.”
He has to shuffle past Jongdae in order to get to the bedroom, and when he passes, Jongdae holds his breath and his eyes widen. He hears a door shut and immediately turns to Chanyeol. “Your mate is an alpha,” he hisses.
Chanyeol laughs. “He certainly is. My mate, the fancy veterinarian alpha,” he sings, and then launches into an epic tale of their meeting, Chanyeol pining after a med student in college until the man finally agreed to a date. Kyungsoo appears near the tail end and groans, adding snarky comments under his breath.
Jongdae jumps when the doorbell rings. Chanyeol hops up and talks cheerfully to someone on the other side and returns with a big brown bag. Jongdae discovers the joys of eating food out of a delightfully small folded box as Chanyeol and Kyungsoo chatter on the floor across from him.
“So you’re here to find your mate?” Kyungsoo asks, shoveling rice into his mouth.
Jongdae nods. “Well, I already found him. He just doesn’t think that I’m his mate, so I need to prove that we’re a good match.”
“Which is why he was looking for a job at the firm,” Chanyeol chimes in. Jongdae nods in affirmation.
Kyungsoo sets down his food. “Sorry, did you say you found your mate?”
Jongdae meets the alpha’s gaze, feeling a little unsure of himself. “Um. Yeah. I went to where he worked and he… didn’t think I was his mate. Even though he could smell me. He asked if I wanted money? But next time it will be different because I’ll have a job just like him and we’ll be together in no time.”
Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a glance and the latter joins Jongdae on the couch. “I don’t think that not having a job is your problem.”
Jongdae looks between the two wolves, frowning. “What do you mean?”
Reluctantly setting down his food, Chanyeol joins the two on the couch. “Jongdae, how much do you know about city wolves?”
Not much. He knows what he’s heard from members of his pack from the outside, and he knows stories of large buildings and crowds of people from talking with men and women from the nearby town that Jongdae’s pack trades food with. He’s never heard of Essence.
It’s a large company that had only cropped up in the last decade, Kyungsoo explains with a slight sneer, founded in this very city. A group of highly educated wolves had decided that they didn’t want to leave their mates to fate. Their other half could be poor, dumb, or not aesthetically pleasing. After a few years of experimenting, they had devised a procedure to find and produce the scent of any wolf’s mate. Then they opened to the public. With just a hair and a hefty amount of money, they can procure a bottle of personalized liquid love. Celebrities have been requested so often that they have shelves of just one scent. They can even finish a request within the hour.
Jongdae bites his lip. “Is Kim Joonmyun a celebrity?”
“Kim Joonmyun?” Chanyeol repeats slowly, and then makes a noise of realization. “Oh man.”
“He is?”
Chanyeol shakes his head. “He’s… a diplomat. Probably has had multiple accounts of fake mates. He’s, um, well known for being a bachelor ever since-”
“Don’t tell him about that,” Kyungsoo interrupts with a small glare. “There’s no need to make the situation worse.” He turns to eye Jongdae pitifully. “Are you going to stay? I understand if you want to head back to your home, in the woods.”
Jongdae shakes his head. “I’m his mate. If I’m not with him, then he’ll be alone.” He nods to himself. “I won’t leave until I convince Kim Joonmyun that I am his mate.”
Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a small smile. Chanyeol bumps his shoulder against Jongdae’s. “And we’ll be here for you, determined little woodsy wolf.”
Since Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a modest one-bedroom apartment, Jongdae has to sleep on the couch. They give him a pillow and a blanket before bidding him goodnight and heading off to bed. Jongdae closes his eyes, exhausted, and then opens them not ten minutes later. He tosses and turns for a good few hours, then gives up and throws the blanket and pillow in a heap on the floor. He sets his clothes aside and shifts, jumping off the couch onto all fours. He stretches his limbs, taking a minute to get used to his form, and then curls up in the sheets.
When Kyungsoo passes him early in the morning, he smiles and scratches between Jongdae’s ears before donning a jacket and heading to work.
-
Jongdae likes his job. Often times, he finds himself forgetting the reason behind his employment, but then he catches a worker fetching a small bottle of what looks like perfume and spraying it over him or herself as a superior walks by and Jongdae glares at the worker. A few of the tiny glasses are found smashed to pieces in the break room throughout the week before Chanyeol calls him into his office and politely asks Jongdae to not tamper with the love lives of others (he had been contacted by a few enraged workers over the issue). Jongdae huffs but agrees, and just glares at the perpetrators.
During his time spent at work, he befriends an angry member of the IT department named Baekhyun, who regularly comes in to complain about things Jongdae’s never even heard about. He’s not a wolf, but he talks a lot, and Jongdae enjoys the silence being filled.
Baekhyun has just left so Jongdae’s filling time by stacking mugs when the door opens and Chanyeol pops his head in, a wordless signal that it’s time to go home.
As they walk back to the apartment building, Chanyeol looks over him. “Doesn’t it hurt, sleeping on the floor every night?”
Jongdae shakes his head. “The blankets are soft and I’m more comfortable as a wolf anyway. My pack and I would only shift when we had chores to do, or when we had to venture into the town, which was not often. It’s a little odd, having to walk around upright on two legs all the time.”
Chanyeol laughs. “Well, I suppose when you put it that way. I don’t think I’ve shifted since I was a kid, so I don’t know how I’d feel about that,” he muses, then frowns and drags his hands down his cheeks. “I’m getting off track! I was going to ask you if you wanted to go to a function with me this weekend. Kyungsoo’s got a surgery for a German Shepherd named Allan-he’s so cute but he has a broken leg at the moment-and I need a date!”
Jongdae blinks. “And your mate would be okay with that?”
“Kyungsoo? Yeah, he suggested it.”
“Oh,” Jongdae considers it, “If you would prefer having someone, I’ll go with you.”
Chanyeol beams and throws an arm around Jongdae. “You’re not going to regret this.”
-
“You knew he would be here.”
Chanyeol shrugs. “Maybe I did.”
Jongdae sighs and grabs another cracker from the platter. Kyungsoo had pulled out one of his larger tuxedos for the occasion, and between him and Chanyeol, they’d gotten it onto Jongdae after a little bit of grief. Jongdae does not like the tuxedo at all. It’s too stiff and it makes his skin itch, prickling with heat beneath the heavy layers. He can only hope that this will be a short affair, but then he catches a skinny man in the corner, talking to a shorter man with blond hair. He glares at Chanyeol and looks pointedly away from the man who smells like home.
An elbow digs into his side. “Now’s your chance,” Chanyeol hisses, gesturing to over where the skinny boy has left and the man is standing alone. “Go now, I’ll come and grab you when it looks like trouble.”
Jongdae’s pushed forward and he spares a second to glare at Chanyeol before sucking in a breath and continuing forward. It’s important to make the best of things. At least, that’s what he tells himself when he walks up to his mate, clears his throat, and says, “Kim Joonmyun.”
The man turns with a practiced smile on his face, which quickly falls when he sees Jongdae. “I thought I smelled a rat,” he spits, “How did you get in?”
“I came with Chanyeol,” Jongdae murmurs. He forgot how much the man hated him and wow, the words really sting.
“Park Chanyeol? The insurance firm?” Jongdae’s mate cocks an eyebrow and takes a sip of his wine. “I thought he already had a mate.”
“Oh, he does. Kyungsoo is very nice, it’s just that he has to perform a surgery tomorrow, so he couldn’t come,” Jongdae explains, elated to find that they’re having a conversation.
“I don’t understand,” he sounds genuinely confused. “How did you worm your way in, then?”
“I’m working as an intern for Chanyeol’s firm,” Jongdae chirps, proud of his accomplishments and overjoyed that he’s finally able to tell his mate about his escapades. “He and his mate are letting me stay with them until…” he trails off. He doesn’t think Joonmyun would appreciate hearing that Jongdae’s still set on becoming his mate and living together. “Until later.”
Joonmyun seems to be thinking and Jongdae eagerly waits for a reply. Though, when the man opens his mouth, Jongdae is yanked back by a hand on his shoulder.
“Hello, Mr. Kim, I do hope I’m not interrupting anything,” Chanyeol greets, then leans down to whisper in Jongdae’s ear, “The lackey is coming back with friends. Are you done?”
Jongdae peeks over Joonmyun’s shoulder and sees the skinny man talking to two men near the doors, sneaking glances towards where he’s standing. Jongdae bites his lip and realizes he’s about to be forced to leave if he doesn’t finish now. “It was, um, nice seeing you,” he murmurs, not looking at Joonmyun. Chanyeol leads them away with a hand thrown over Jongdae’s shoulders.
“So there wasn’t any shouting. I’d say it turned out well,” Chanyeol remarks with a hesitant smile. “What do you think?”
Jongdae nods. “He didn’t accuse me of being a fraud, so there’s that.” He frowns. “Well, not outright, at least.”
Chanyeol nods. “That’s a start.” He looks around. “I think I’ve talked to enough old men in fancy clothes for the day. Are you ready to head back?”
Jongdae replied in the affirmative. As the doors to the elevator close-Baekhyun had taught him all about the traveling box a few days back-Jongdae smiles to himself. “My mate changed his hair. It was brown, but now it’s blond.”
“Oh, I thought something about him was different.” Chanyeol presses the button before Jongdae can do it and grins triumphantly. “It looks good.”
“Of course it does,” Jongdae agrees matter-of-fact, and then leans over to hit Chanyeol when the man laughs heartily at him.
Joonmyun watches as the two men disappear from sight.
“Was he trying to threaten you or something?”
“No,” Joonmyun starts, still confused. “He wanted me to know he had gotten a job.”
“Weird.”
“Quite,” he agrees. He turns to face Sehun and eyes the phone still in his hand. “So is everything okay? No problems at home?”
“Huh? Oh, no. Jongin just wanted to complain about having to watch his sister’s kids. Says he’s going to make me stay next time. Then I guess one of the tater tots ripped out the phone cord because the line went dead,” Sehun says.
Joonmyun grins. “Are you sure you still want them?”
“Yes are you kidding me,” Sehun shouts, garnering attention from people nearby, “Jongin would make like the perfect dad.” Quietly he adds, “You’ll understand when you find your mate.”
The shorter man shrugs and smiles when Sehun’s phone goes off again and his secretary rushes off. Now alone, his gaze drifts back to the elevator.
-
Jongdae gets paid. It’s weird and a little confusing for all involved, because he has to drag Chanyeol down to payroll to explain that the money needs to be delivered to Chanyeol’s address and, whoops, they still need to find Jongdae’s government-issued identification that all people in the city have but they’ll hand it in as soon as they find it (no they won’t, because they’ll never find it).
But when they get home at the end of the next week, there’s an envelope waiting for Jongdae in the mailbox. He opens it excitedly and pulls out a smaller envelope and a piece of paper with a lot of writing and numbers on it. In the smaller envelope is a small pile of bills. Kyungsoo frowns at the amount and Chanyeol starts to apologize for the meager amount, but Jongdae is just confused as to what he’s supposed to do with the paper. He thought, for all the work he’d be doing, he’d at least be given cloth and food for his work. Even the people in the villages nearby his pack were generous enough to give actual clothes and juicy, ripe fruit in return for their kills.
When Jongdae says that aloud, however, all he gets is Chanyeol cracking up and Kyungsoo mussing his hair affectionately. They take him out for dinner and demonstrate what to do with the rectangular paper.
Jongdae goes out the next night, alone, and gets ice cream. He decides that life is wonderful and his paper is something to treasure.
Things get busier at work and Chanyeol can’t walk Jongdae home each day anymore. Jongdae assures him it’s alright and wanders around for a few hours before going home. He does this every day, and finds a small store that makes candies that remind him of home and he never fails to pop in and buy a bag on his way home.
At work, one of his superiors-not Chanyeol, surprisingly enough-commends his efforts and offers him a full-time job. When he reports the news to Baekhyun, the man snorts and tells Jongdae he’ll be making copies and coffees for the rest of his life. Jongdae cheers and demands a high five that Baekhyun reluctantly gives. Later, he wonders if his mate would be happy for him, too.
With his new paycheck, Jongdae has money leftover after buying his favorite candies. It takes him a few days to decide what he should do with it.
He runs into the store and gingerly shakes off his umbrella generously donated by Kyungsoo, who had shaken his head when Chanyeol and Jongdae tried to argue the joys of getting wet in the rain. “Respiratory virus,” the veterinarian had said, and Jongdae took the umbrella.
Jongdae dumps the bag of sweets on the counter and the older woman behind the desk smiles knowingly at him. “Will that be all?”
“No,” Jongdae starts, enjoying the surprised look he receives. “I think I want something else. Very sweet. What do you recommend?”
The woman smiles and Jongdae walks out of the store with a bag full of candy and a box of chocolates in a cute plastic bag with a happy face. The rain has picked up and the streetlamps are on, the last light of the day falling past the horizon. Jongdae opens his umbrella and prepares himself for the pelting rain just as a man in a suit turns the corner and starts hurrying his way. He has blond hair and Jongdae starts as a woodsy aroma assaults him and his throat constricts.
He finds himself on the other side of the street and at the man’s side before he knows what’s going on. “Kim Joonmyun,” he calls out, voice wavering.
The man stops and turns, hair plastered to his forehead and drops of water trailing down his face. Jongdae hurries over and quickly has them both under the cover of the white umbrella. “You again,” Joonmyun murmurs with a slight lilt of his lips, “And you have an umbrella. Did you plan this?”
“No!” Jongdae shakes his head. “I just saw you and I thought… Why are you out in the rain?”
“I suppose there isn’t any harm in telling you. My car won’t start and Sehun’s gone home already. A taxi is unnecessary and the rain wasn’t awful when I left, but it’s picked up a bit since. Is that all?”
“I like your hair,” Jongdae says under his breath, but Joonmyun either doesn’t hear or ignores him. He makes to step out from under the umbrella and Jongdae jumps into action. “No! It’s raining too hard. I’ll walk you home!” He tries his best not to sound too desperate but it’s painfully obvious that he’s really, really hoping for a yes.
“Do I really want you knowing where I live?” Joonmyun wonders aloud, almost indistinguishable from the loud pattering of rain. He sighs. “Okay.”
Jongdae grins and begins to walk, his mate matching his pace beside him. It’s nice, though they’re both keeping a fair amount of space between them so Jongdae’s arm is becoming quite soaked. He doesn’t really mind.
“This isn’t going to work.” Joonmyun stops and Jongdae has to backtrack, frowning worriedly. “You should go home anyway. It’s late.”
Jongdae shakes his head, thinking. “Wait. I can make this work.” He hands his bag and umbrella to Joonmyun, who merely stares at him with vague interest. He stares down at his clothes and is thankful that he decided against his nicer pair of jeans and then he shifts, the familiar tingling in his spine welcome as he falls onto all fours and works out the tightness in his shoulders before looking up at Joonmyun, tail wagging.
“I can’t believe you just did that in the open,” Joonmyun says, rolling his eyes when Jongdae yips in response. “Well, now that you’ve gone and done that, we may as well keep going.” He switches the bag to his other hand and carries Jongdae’s borrowed umbrella as he walks, Jongdae trotting along at his side. Rain falls around them and Jongdae is filled with a sense of contentment.
“It’s too quiet,” Joonmyun says, voice just loud enough to hear. “I’m used to mindless chatter when I walk, so I suppose I’ll have to supply it this time around.” He shakes the bag and adjusts his hold on the umbrella. “I don’t know why you’re trying so hard. Actually, maybe I do. Just a little. A while ago-if you can believe it-I wasn’t so cynical. I really did believe in destiny and that my other half was out there. When she came along she smelled just like you do and I thought, this it it. She’s the one.
“We dated for a short time, it was a little meaningless considering we were fated together, but I wanted to go through the motions. She was my first for many things. I proposed and we planned for the wedding. She planned for houses and children but I just planned on the wedding. I’m a fan of weddings. She had simple features and a slight figure; she would never stop complaining about finding clothes that fit her right. But in her wedding gown, she looked immaculate. I loved her even more.
“It was on our wedding day,” Joonmyun clears his throat, “Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. I saw her briefly in the morning and she looked frazzled which was understandable but she smelled differently. She was whisked away, so I couldn’t talk to her about it. Right before the ceremony, when everyone was preoccupied, I slipped away to see if everything was alright. When I opened the door she was spraying herself with perfume-all over. The bottle had my name on it. I cancelled the ceremony and told her I never wanted to see her again. As it turned out, she was only the first of many.”
Jongdae startles, jumping slightly when his paw connects with concrete and he looks up to see stairs. Joonmyun folds up the umbrella and shakes off most of the rain while Jongdae prances up the stairs and plops down on his butt, waiting for Joonmyun to come up.
“You’re walking me all the way to my room?” Joonmyun’s lips quirk up in a smile when Jongdae barks in answer. “Chivalry isn’t dead,” he mutters, opening the door for the both of them. He leads the way over to the stairs and Jongdae scampers after him, running up flights and then waiting for Joonmyun at the landing, tail wagging. They stop at the sixth floor, Jongdae hanging back to pad down the hall after Joonmyun. The man stops at a door and sets down the umbrella and bag, pulling out his keys.
“I was telling you all that so that you would know it wasn’t worth it,” Joonmyun says, turning the key in the lock, “Frankly, it’s selfish to go after someone else when you have someone who’s spent their whole life waiting for you. So stop.”
Jongdae cocks his head to the side.
Joonmyun sighs and stands in the open doorway, staring at the wolf that makes it almost up to Joonmyun’s chest when sitting down, and a strange look crosses his face. Jongdae’s tail ceases its movements as the man leans down and gently presses his face to Jongdae’s head. It lasts only a second, and then Joonmyun pulls back, a thoughtful look on his face. Then the door closes and Jongdae’s alone in the hallway.
He takes a moment, collecting himself, and then stuffs his face into the bag, searching until he finds the box of chocolates and carefully pulls them out with his teeth, leaning the box up against the door. Done, he gingerly picks up the bag and umbrella, careful not to tear either with his teeth. He runs all the way home, knowing these legs better than his other pair. The rain leaves him soaked as he scampers up to Kyungsoo and Chanyeol’s apartment so he sets the two items down and shakes himself off before pawing at the door.
It’s Chanyeol who opens it, and he takes one look at Jongdae before beaming. “Looks like you had yourself an adventure.”
-
Jongdae has a lot of time to think about Joonmyun’s words, seeing as he doesn’t so much as catch a glance of the man in the weeks that follow their confrontation. Again and again, he finds himself at the same decision. The city is a corrupt place, but his mate is a good person and Jongdae will wait years if he has to, because eventually he will be able to convince Joonmyun that he isn’t just another fraud.
Though, it’s hard to do that when he isn’t sure when exactly he’ll see the man again. Going back to the tall building is out of question, Jongdae doesn’t was to be thrown on the street again, so he bids his time by immersing himself in work. He becomes quite good at making coffee, and people begin leaving him tips. Jongdae creates little hearts in the foam atop each cup and looks up new designs. For a woman about to go on maternity leave, he gifts a large mug of hot chocolate topped with a smiley face and becomes somewhat famous for it. Chanyeol calls him the Coffee Connoisseur, which sounds cool even if Jongdae has no idea what it means.
“No, make more swirls,” Baekhyun demands.
“Don’t you have work to do?” Jongdae prods playfully, grinning outright when the man groans.
“Stop reminding me and just-”
Chanyeol steps into the room. “Can you go to an even with me this weekend? Kyungsoo’s got a parrot whose lost its voice and a litter of kittens with some kind of feline fever. Don’t make me go alone.”
Jongdae blinks. “This weekend?”
“Yes. Say okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yes I love you okay bye.”
Baekhyun glares at the ground. “Well I’m busy this weekend.”
-
“He’s not going to be here. Some conference overseas. He’s our representative and it’s a pretty big deal, a large step forward for someone maybe looking forward to a higher position. No chance he’d miss it.” Chanyeol frowns sympathetically. “Sorry.”
“No, it’s fine.” Jongdae grabs a handful of food from a tray. “So, who do you need to talk to first?”
They get through a handful of smartly dressed men and women, Jongdae standing aside and listening with slight interest as Chanyeol does his best to engage them in conversation and, by the end of the talk, have them intrigued by his firm. This is how the firm got so large, Chanyeol explains after handing out another of his business cards. Funding.
Jongdae doesn’t really understand, but he enjoys listening to the conversations. He sneakily continues to grab the odd morsels on the trays, nodding as he chews and listens to Chanyeol talk business. He understands why Kyungsoo doesn’t come to these things.
Chanyeol checks another person off his list and his business smile smoothes out into something more natural. He turns to Jongdae, about to say something, but stops when he sees someone approaching.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but do you mind if I borrow him?” Joonmyun asks with a polite smile, looking between the two of them after gesturing to Jongdae.
Chanyeol’s head snaps to look at the shorter man, unsure of how to answer. Jongdae nods. “You’re not interrupting anything. It’s fine. I’ll, um, see you later?” He says the last bit to Chanyeol, trying to reassure the man with a smile as he turns to follow Joonmyun, who had started walking away from the gathering as soon as Jongdae had given his answer. They head towards the elevators and Joonmyun presses the down button. Jongdae frowns. “Chanyeol said you weren’t going to be here.”
“I begged out at the last second. I had something more pressing.” Joonmyun states as the doors open and he pulls Jongdae in with him, causing the man to bump against his front while the doors close. “I’ve decided that I… want to try.”
Try. Jongdae’s eyes widen in realization and he surges forward, throwing himself onto the man. He can feel the laugh that Joonmyun gives in response, arms slowly coming up to wrap around Jongdae. “I’ve never had anyone quite as persistent as you.”
Jongdae flushes, hiding his face in Joonmyun’s shoulder. He breathes in the smell of Joonmyun, his mate, and he feels boneless.
The doors open and Joonmyun pulls away, hand on Jongdae’s wrist to keep him beside him. They head out to the lobby and stop. In the large windows, rain is pelting down. It had been clear when Jongdae got here, but he remembers something about a chance of rain.
“My apartment is three blocks away,” Joonmyun says, slowly heading towards the doors. When they reach the last barricade between themselves and the storm raging outside, Joonmyun turns to Jongdae, a glint in his eyes. Jongdae grins, tangles their fingers together, and pushes the door open.
They run as fast as they can, laughing breathlessly into the night, expensive clothes becoming more drenched by the second. Even when they make it to the building, they don’t stop, racing up the stairs and pausing outside Joonmyun’s apartment only long enough for the man to stop and fish out his keys.
They shut the door behind them and face each other. Jongdae is sure that the apartment is very nice, but he doesn’t want to take his eyes off of Joonmyun for even a moment. He gasps for breath, grinning when he sees that Joonmyun is doing the same. He lifts his free hand, cautiously bringing it up to smooth Joonmyun’s hair out of his eyes. He keeps his hand there when the man doesn’t object, running his fingers through the strands and fisting them loosely.
Joonmyun disentangles their hands. He reaches up and cups Jongdae’s face in his hands, thumbs smoothing over his prominent cheekbones. Jongdae’s hand falls to the back of Joonmyun’s neck when the latter leans forward and presses their foreheads together, breath mingling.
Jongdae closes his eyes when plush lips press against his own, one hand curled around Joonmyun’s neck and the other fisting in the soaked material of his suit jacket. It’s short, but when Joonmyun pulls away Jongdae follows and they kiss again, this time more insistent.
It’s a blur as they shed clothes and fall onto the bed in another room, Jongdae desperate and wanting but Joonmyun keeps pulling away. Finally, he begs to be touched and Joonmyun whispers into his ear, “I won’t make you mine. Not tonight.”
Jongdae groans. “Joonmyun, touch me. Please,” he whines, head clouded and still-slick skin too hot. He sucks in a breath when Joonmyun reaches in between them grab his hard length. Jongdae moans low and digs his fingers into Joonmyun’s back.
Joonmyun holds both of their cocks and strokes them together. Jongdae gasps as he nears his end entirely too quickly, feeling like putty in Joonmyun’s sure hands. He comes with a cry of his mate’s name and struggles to catch his breath, eyes glues to Joonmyun’s face as he strokes himself to completion, cum landing on Jongdae’s already dirtied stomach.
He finally has his mate, his other half, in his arms. Jongdae beams with happiness and rolls them onto their sides, drinking in the smell of Joonmyun and drifting off.
“Jongdae,” Joonmyun grunts, “You’re covered in cum. You need a shower.”
Jongdae grunts his disagreement, but follows when Joonmyun pulls his up and leads him into the shower. Jongdae wraps his arms around the man’s middle as they step under the warm spray, and Joonmyun stays in his hold, only taking a step away to wash Jongdae’s front.
They stand under the warm spray for longer than they need to, pads of their fingers and toes growing wrinkly. Jongdae begins to doze off, but has a moment of clarity when Joonmyun gently nuzzles his face into his neck.
“We never took showers together, her and I,” he whispers into Jongdae’s skin, “I thought it was because she was shy. But the perfume washes off.” He breathes deeply into the juncture of Jongdae’s shoulder and neck and the sleepy man can feel the smile on Joonmyun’s face. “You are mine.”
Jongdae whimpers when Joonmyun nibbles his skin, leaning his head back on the tile wall. “I am yours,” he agrees.
He’ll tell Chanyeol and Kyungsoo tomorrow. For now, he’ll enjoy this for as long as he can.
-
Joonmyun is awoken by something lapping at his face. Groaning, he reaches up to push the perpetrator away and slowly opens his eyes. “Jongdae, it’s too early for this.”
The gray wolf yips happily, tongue lolling out of his mouth. He has Joonmyun trapped, paws on either side of the sleeping man. Lately, he’s been trying to sleep in his bipedal form but to no avail. It’s not comfortable and it feels unnatural. So, instead, he’s decided to try and convince Joonmyun to sleep in his wolf form. This is a very important undertaking, as he’s never even seen the man as a wolf.
He won’t give up.
Joonmyun pulls the blanket over his head and Jongdae huffs, pawing at the material in annoyance, barking happily when Joonmyun’s face appears, the glare he’s giving not effective at all.
“If I shift, will you stop?”
Jongdae rears his head back and howls, shifting on his legs happily when Joonmyun hisses at him to stop, goddammit, it’s six in the morning. He lowers his face and tentatively licks Joonmyun’s nose, pleased with himself when he earns a small smile. Joonmyun closes his eyes and tenses his body.
Jongdae blinks and he’s on his back, at the foot of the bed. He jumps to his feet and rests his chin on the bed, tail wagging.
Joonmyun is gorgeous.
If it wasn't clear that he was an alpha before, it certainly is now. In Joonmyun's place stands a dark wolf, powerful muscles tensed beneath the thick coat of hair. He doesn't have a single scratch on him, unlike many of the alphas Jongdae's chanced upon before, but Joonmyun radiates an energy that leaves Jongdae wondering if any wolf would dare try and leave a mark upon him.
The wolf huffs when Jongdae doesn't so much as blink, and flops down on the bed. On his side, limbs sprawled, he takes up almost the entire queen mattress.
Jongdae collects himself and nimbly hops onto the bed. He carefully pads over the comforter, stopping by Joonmyun's exposed belly. The wolf opens an eye and stares at Jongdae in question. The gray wolf drops down by Joonmyun's side, curling up into a ball and pressing his snout into Joonmyun's chest.
He closes his eyes in contentment when a tail is thrown over his back flank and Joonmyun shifts closer, fitting himself around Jongdae and resting his chin on Jongdae's head. He breathes in deeply and relaxes, snoring lightly when he falls asleep.
Jongdae stays awake, reveling in the feel of another wolf at his side. The smell of Joonmyun surrounds him and he nuzzles further into his other half. His mate.
To be honest, Jongdae didn’t think that finding his mate would be this difficult. wolf!au
A/N: Originally written here.
So, this is it. This is the city.
Jongdae smiles to himself as he takes a step forward, away from his past and into his bright future. Sadly, his future is a bit too bright-blindingly so-and actually really painful. Jongdae yips a few seconds too late and retreats back into the safety of the forest, diving into a bush and burying his paws in the cool soil. Shoes. He needs shoes.
Upon shifting onto two legs and pulling on the clothes he had thrown into the knapsack he has been carrying on his back, Jongdae feels a lot more prepared. This time, when he steps onto the searingly hot black surface, his feet do not smart at the action. His smile returns. He’s got this.
As Jongdae sniffs the air carefully, he goes over the plan. Walk into the city, find his mate, and then take her-or him, Jongdae doesn’t mind really. It’s his mate!-back home with him. They’ll have pups-or, if it does turn out to be a he, they can look after others’ pups. Jongdae’s pack is full of very agreeable wolves-and live happily ever after! Man, he is so pumped. The wind changes direction and Jongdae seizes. There! There it is!
He almost shifts right then and there to go bounding after the scent, but contains himself. The wolves in the city are very civilized-self-centered was the word Jongdae’s father had used, but then one of the betas had hit him so Jongdae thinks that civilized is a better word-and hardly ever turn. Not even during a full moon, which impresses Jongdae to no end. His mate is going to be the most sophisticated person out there. Jongdae is brimming with pride and he hasn’t even met the wolf yet.
He follows the scent away from the forest and everything he knows, through crowded streets, clinging to the aroma like a lifeline. His heightened senses are the same no matter the form he takes, but he still feels the impulse to shift crawling under his skin and it’s as prominent as the adrenaline coursing through his veins. Jongdae tries his best to stay focused, smile broadening when the scent becomes stronger, revealing itself a little more with every twist and turn, inviting him in with warm hints of nutmeg and pine along with something entirely different; something that can only come from its owner.
Jongdae’s mate smells like home.
His nose leads him across a few more stretches of black, until Jongdae has to stop in front of a pair of double glass doors. He jumps in place. This is it.
With great fanfare, he bursts through the doors, the almost empty knapsack on his back bouncing happily with each step. The sun is at his back, lightening the path ahead of him and guiding his way. Jongdae sweeps past the large entrance, not sparing a glance for the incredibly high ceiling or intricate wall designs. He ends up in a box and thinks he hears a woman’s voice call after him, but he can’t be sure because two metal walls slide closed in front of him and Jongdae is trapped in this box. His eyes wander, and he finds a series of buttons on the panel in front of him. They brighten as he presses them, so naturally he hits them all, grinning when the metal finally gives way.
Before he can disembark, his nose gives an involuntary twitch and his face screws up in response. His mate isn’t here. He stays inside the box as the walls slide shut and frowns. Well, what now? When the large panels open again, the scenery is different. Jongdae is confused, but excited by this new game. Throughout his time spent in the box, a few others step inside with him, but aren’t as entertained with the game as Jongdae. He chalks it up to their having lived in the city for a while, and thus having lost part of their spirit. They no longer know what fun is. Jongdae hopes his mate isn’t like them.
When the metal parts for the umpteenth time, Jongdae’s hands fist in the material of his borrowed shirt. The scent is stronger, so much stronger, and Jongdae practically crumples then and there. Instead, he musters up his strength and steps out of the box, following the heady scent down a narrow hallway lined with fake plants, which confuses Jongdae but he doesn’t have time to ponder the fact that people would craft plants out of synthetic material instead of simply caring for a seed. Except he’s not the best multi-tasker so as he’s contemplating the farming skill of city wolves, he isn’t paying attention to where he is going so he walks head-first into a door with a muted thud. Jongdae covers his injured nose long enough to make sure it isn’t a serious wound, then gingerly opens the door and steps inside.
There is only one person in the room, a skinny man who is looking at Jongdae with a mix of confusion and annoyance. Jongdae decides to get out of his hair as soon as possible and takes another whiff of the air.
Wow.
The scent is almost overpowering. Not because it’s so close-practically within his reach-but because it belongs to an alpha. God. Jongdae’s mate is an alpha. He takes a minute to let it sink in, and then his head snaps to the origin of the scent. Another door is almost hidden in the corner of the room, and that is where his nose is leading him. Jongdae practically races forward, peripheral vision catching the movement of the skinny man jumping out of his seat and reaching for him, but Jongdae’s already in the much larger room. The only man inside, seated behind a huge winding desk, stands.
He’s not large. He’s probably the same size as the man behind the desk. Really, the man doesn’t have any of the common physical traits of an alpha, but his status is clear. It radiates off of him, and is obvious in the way he holds himself: head high, shoulders squared, and face impassive. On top of that, he’s gorgeous. From his gently styled dark hair to his soft features and wow. Jongdae’s in love with him already. But that’s okay! Because they’re mates and this is how it’s supposed to work, even if Jongdae wasn’t quite ready for someone so breathtaking. His mate coughs and Jongdae suddenly realizes he’s just been staring at the man like an idiot. He colors. How embarrassing. He should introduce himself.
“Hi, I’m Kim Jongdae!” He greets by way of introduction. “And I’m your mate!”
His mate-the golden bar on his desk reads Kim Joonmyun-cocks an eyebrow and his previously inquisitive eyes close off, like the metal panels in the box. “Oh, are you?” He makes a show of taking an experimental sniff and nods. “You smell like it.” He collapses back into his large chair, which only serves to make him seem more unapproachable. “So, how much?”
“I-I’m sorry?” Jongdae is confused. Perhaps mates in the city have some sort of protocol that he’s missing out on. He should’ve hung around the streets a bit longer to observe the city wolves and their tendencies, but he couldn’t help himself as soon as he caught a hint of his mate. He’s regretting the missed opportunity now. Just a bit. Jongdae turns towards the skinny man for help, but the man is blocking the doorway with his scrawny body, speaking into a rectangular contraption, too low to make out his words. He turns back to face his mate and fights the urge to cower. This is his mate, dammit, not some run of the mill alpha who’s trying to encroach on his territory. Jongdae feels the need to speak again; he thinks Kim Joonmyun is waiting for something. “I don’t understand what you mean.”
His mate sighs. “Yes, of course you don’t.” He seats himself back in the large chair and shoots skinny boy a hard look. “Sehun, whenever you’re ready.”
“They’re on their way,” skinny boy reports back and Jongdae feels hopelessly lost.
“Jongdae, was it?” Joonmyun asks in a smooth voice that belies no emotion and Jongdae nods eagerly. “We have less than a minute to settle this. If you would please tell me how much you came here for, I will gladly hand it to you in cash and you can drop the facade and walk out of here of your own accord. If not, I’ll have to forcibly remove you.” He taps his fingers on his desk and rests his head on his hand, elbow resting on the edge of polished wood. “So, what’ll it be, love?” He sneers the term and if Jongdae had his tail right now, it would be between his legs.
With a rising sense of dread, he realizes that the man isn’t indifferent, he’s irritated and he’s not even trying to hide it. Jongdae swallows around the large lump in his throat and speaks. “Money? I don’t want any money. I just want you.” He nervously chews on his bottom lip, hands shaking at his sides. “You’re my mate,” he tries again because it’s the best argument he has. Everything that he knows screams that it should be the only argument he needs. The look his mate is giving him disagrees.
“That’s too bad,” he says, but he doesn’t sound like he means it. He nods to the skinny man and he steps away from the door just as it opens and two brawny men march inside. “I want him out of here,” Joonmyun orders, pointing at the man across from him.
Jongdae whimpers as two meaty hands grab his arms, fingers digging into his skin, and he's lifted off the ground. He looks away from Joonmyun, who is glaring at him, and tries for the skinny man by the door. He hangs his head when he finds that he, too, is sending Jongdae a heated glare.
Jongdae goes limp and allows himself to be dragged out, ignoring the now bittersweet scent that is growing weaker and weaker.
As soon as the doors close, Joonmyun slumps, dropping his head onto the cool wooden table. "Sehun."
The secretary nods apologetically, biting his lip. "I'm so sorry. He ran in before I could even say anything."
Joonmyun raises his head, waving his hand dismissively. "It's fine," he sighs, "Just. Make sure it doesn't happen again." He fixes the younger man with a weak gaze. "Please."
Sehun nods, features hard, and heads back to his desk, closing the door behind him.
-
Jongdae is thrown onto the concrete unceremoniously and lands with a yelp.
"Refrain from disturbing Mr. Kim at work again," the taller of the two says, "This is just a warning. Next time the consequences will be far worse."
Jongdae watches as both of the suited men head back into the building. He realizes his arms are shaking and unsteadily pushes himself up. He walks until he's on the border of the city and forest, and can barely even smell his mate. He sits down and wonders what he's to do now. Heading home is out of the question. The only lone wolves he knows are those who have had their other halves pass away. He can't go back empty-handed. So, he has to find out how to convince this Kim Joonmyun that they are meant to be. Slim stick in hand, he ponders the reasons why his mate didn't believe him. He should be able to go on from there. Perhaps the man has never heard of mates? Jongdae remembers the sarcastic sneer and sadly shakes his head. No, the man definitely knew what Jongdae was claiming to be. He draws a large X in the dirt and tries again. He can't think of any other reasons. Jongdae is perplexed, he means, who wouldn't want him? He's gorgeous, a great hunter, he knows the forest like his hand and-oh. Of course.
His mate is a city wolf. Jongdae is most definitely not. The man must think Jongdae would make an awful mate, being a big-city alpha and all. Well Jongdae will show him. He can be a city wolf too, if he wants. A damn good one. It’ll be easy. Jongdae is a natural at everything. Pleased with his conclusion, he draws out a rough plan in the dirt, starting with item number one: Get a fancy city job.
Jongdae scouts the park beside the line of comforting trees for jobs. Thanks to his superior nose, he sniffs out a day-old paper from a metal can and discovers a neat little column labeled Jobs. Perfect. He rolls it up and slides it into his backpack, heading for the first location, right on Main Street.
He finds the building without trouble. He heads in, informs the kind woman at the front desk that he's here for the open position, and is shown into a small room. His-hopefully-future boss is a portly, balding man, and gives Jongdae a tight, business smile before beginning an unwanted interrogation.
"What kind of skills do you have to offer, Mr. Kim?"
"Well," Jongdae begins, not wanting to brag, "one time I took down an entire boar by myself."
From the man's horrified expression, Jongdae remembers that not everyone that lives in the city is a wolf, and those that do keep it secret. He is given a short rejection speech and shown to the door. Jongdae heads out of the room and to the front door by himself, where the receptionist-who is a wolf-is waiting, worriedly wringing her hands. At her kind suggestion, Jongdae crosses the other two Animal Humane Societies looking for employees off his list. For a moment, he wishes that this woman was his mate, but then he remembers that his mate is a gorgeous alpha and he quickly thanks her before heading to the next location.
Jongdae had no idea that so many people lived in the city. The population seems to be predominantly human with a few wolves here and there. He's never felt further from home.
Out of the next five jobs he tries for-all of which include an unnecessary series of questions that include strange words like 'college' and years spent in the 'workforce.' Jongdae gets out of them by staring at his interrogator until he or she coughs and moves on-only once does meet another wolf. He explains his predicament to the man and with an empathetic pat on the back; he tells Jongdae that a software company just isn't the right place for him.
After a little bit more walking, Jongdae finds himself in a much busier area, full of noisy, chuffing cars and impatient workers. He ambles his way through the crowd until he is beneath the overhang of a large building-not far from his mate's; he can pick up the scent clearly from where he stands-and reads the sign above him. New Age Insurance. Sounds promising. Sounds like something he can brag about.
Jongdae pulls out his paper and smiles when he finds the business listed-though they're looking for 'interns' and Jongdae has no idea what that means. He takes a deep breath, pushes out his chest, and waltzes into the building.
He shows the paper to the inquisitive woman at the front desk and she points him down the halfway and gives his outfit an odd look. Jongdae tries to ignore it as he heads down the hall and takes the first left, but he's a little shaken. He had thought a t-shirt and jeans would be plenty normal for a city dweller, but maybe he was mistaken. Maybe it was the clothes that had made Kim Joonmyun decide he wasn't the right sort of mate.
After giving his name to a bespectacled worker, Jongdae takes a seat among a few dozen well-dressed men and women and waits. He catches onto the pattern quickly. A name is called, the person enters into one of the three rooms looking spectacularly anxious, and then they return about twenty minutes later, crushed and dejected, slouching as they exit and receive a card from the worker with the glasses.
When Jongdae's name is called, he stands and enters the room on the right, and finds a cozy little place with a desk, two chairs, and a lamp in the corner. It's reminiscent of a cave and Jongdae happily takes the chair across from the man in the room when invited to do so.
"So, Kim Jongdae, this will be a short interview. I do not want to see your resume or any recommendations, I will just ask you a series of questions and that will be all," the man says in a droll tone. Jongdae opens his mouth to agree to the task, but then the man adds in a much chipper tone, "This is exciting. We don't get many wolves."
Jongdae immediately gasps, propelling himself to the edge of his seat. "You're a wolf, too?" The man certainly doesn't look it, but then again, neither had the previous two city wolves.
"Sure am," the man says with a grin. "So, Jongdae, tell me what you think you have to offer for our firm."
Jongdae honestly has nothing to offer. But he really needs this job. It's one of the last ones on the list. "I really need this job."
The man quirks a brow. "Um-"
Jongdae doesn't waste a second, doesn't want to be rejected before he tells his story. "I'm not a city wolf. I came here to find my mate and I did but he's a little... he didn't seem very happy with me. So! I thought if I could land a fancy city job, he would decide that I we make a good pair and then we will mate and it will be great.” Jongdae takes in a lungful of air, having said everything in one breath. “So I need this job. Please.”
The man blinks. “You’re a wolf from the woods?”
Jongdae nods.
“How far away?” He leans forward on his desk, pen and paper pushed aside.
“About a day.”
The man taps idly on his desk, drawing his lip into his mouth. He seems to be considering something for a moment, and then abruptly picks up a black device on his desk. “Hello? Yes, I want to speak to whoever is on duty at the moment.” Jongdae watches, confused, as the man turns to face the wall and continues talking to himself. “Yes, how many employees were we looking for? Six? Change it to five.” He sets the device back down and holds a hand out to Jongdae. “Welcome to New Age Insurance. Let me show you around.”
Jongdae gingerly shakes the proffered hand and follows the man out of the room. Curious eyes follow them as Jongdae is led back down the hall and into a box.
“I apologize for being so brusque,” the man begins, and Jongdae looks up to see an easy grin that he subconsciously reciprocates, “I am just really, really into wolves from the woods. I’ve never met one before. Do you like it here? What did you eat? Did you actually bathe in rivers?” He clears his throat. “Sorry, we can talk about that later.”
The doors open and Jongdae is led past hallways that look somewhat like those from his mates’ place of work and into a large room at the end of the hall furnished with a couch, two chairs, and a desk. The man takes a seat behind the desk and invites Jongdae to sit as well with a sweep of his hand. Cautiously, Jongdae sets himself on the couch, close to the door.
“We were looking for college students. It’s good for PR and all that. But no one will mind that there are five instead of six. Besides, nobody argues with the CFO." His eyes widen and he backtracks when Jongdae doesn't even crack a smile. "But don't let that scare you! I'm really just a normal worker like everyone else!"
Jongdae blinks. He has no idea what a CFO is.
"So, it's just an internship, not anything big but I’m sure if you demonstrate good work, we might ask you to stay.” The man smiles. “Do you have any questions? If not, I can introduce you to your supervisor and you can start straight away.”
Jongdae immediately sits straight up in his seat. A job! “Start now!” He almost shouts, coloring when the man laughs.
“Okay, let’s get to it. You said your name was Kim Jongdae, correct?” He asks and Jongdae nods with a quick jerk of his head. The man holds out his hand. “I’m Park Chanyeol. Now, let’s get you started.”
-
Jongdae’s supervisor is not a wolf. Chanyeol informs him of this right before they meet. She is very kind nonetheless, laughing when Chanyeol lowers his voice to tell her that he’d decided to hire one of the interns without discussing the matter with anyone else. After pursing her lips to hide her laughter, she holds a finger to her lips and promises not to tell anyone. With a sigh of relief, Chanyeol leaves and it’s just Jongdae and the woman. She smiles at him and bids him to follow as she heads into a room.
Jinah-that’s her name-is nice, if a little judgmental when Jongdae admits he has no idea how to make coffee. He learns that, as an intern, he is expected to make copies of paper and deliver coffee to anyone that asks. It sounds a bit like servitude. When he says that aloud, Jinah laughs and hands him a cookie.
Jongdae gets started right away. He marvels silently as a monstrous white machine spits out identical sheets of paper when he presses a button, and frowns in disappointment when the men and women he hands coffee to spit out the drink immediately.
A little while later, Jinah appears to show him how to clean the filter. Even later, she returns to show him the difference between the salt and sugar containers with a small smile.
Chanyeol doesn’t return until the orders for coffees and copies have died down.
“You’re still here.”
Jongdae looks up from where he’s restacking the pile of cups he knocked over earlier in the day. He’d just knocked them back over because he’s feeling incredibly restless. Though, he frowns at the statement. “Where else would I be?”
“Everyone else has already left,” Chanyeol explains, stepping into the room. “I thought you would have gone home by now. Or wherever you’re staying. Hotel?”
Jongdae sets down the cup he’s holding and frowns. “I, um, didn’t think that far ahead.” Mostly because he’d thought he would whisk his mate off his or her feet and he would spend the night with his other half. But. That’s not really a viable option at the moment.
“You don’t have a place to stay?”
The voice comes from right behind Jongdae and he jumps. “Uh. No?”
Chanyeol grabs his arm. “You have to stay with me. The city gets bad at night and I couldn’t live with myself if I left you by yourself.” He drops his arm and smiles apologetically. “Of course, only if you want to come.”
He doesn’t have much of a choice. And despite how overwhelmingly… enthusiastic Chanyeol is, he seems like a genuinely nice person. He’s a wolf, too, and Jongdae’s already starting to miss his pack. “If you’ll have me, I think I would like to stay with you.”
With a loud cheer, Chanyeol links their arms together. “My mate will love you,” he promises, leading them both out of the room, “he adores surprises.”
-
Jongdae does not think Chanyeol knows what his mate likes at all. They’re sitting on the couch talking about what it’s like living in the woods-Chanyeol finds it interesting to no end and Jongdae doesn’t mind answering his many questions-when the door opens and a man steps inside. He takes one look at the two on the couch and stills.
“Chanyeol,” he snaps, nose wrinkling, “What did I tell you about bringing in strays?”
Jongdae is frozen in fear, but Chanyeol leaps up and pulls the smaller man into a hug. “Kyungsoo, light of my life, you have returned!” The man in his embrace grunts in answer. “His name is Jongdae and he’s from the woods. I told him he could stay here.”
Chanyeol’s mate ducks out of the bear hug and pats himself down. He sighs. “You haven’t started dinner yet, have you?” The taller man stares at the ground in lieu of a reply. Kyungsoo sighs. “I’ll order out then. Give me a minute to change.”
He has to shuffle past Jongdae in order to get to the bedroom, and when he passes, Jongdae holds his breath and his eyes widen. He hears a door shut and immediately turns to Chanyeol. “Your mate is an alpha,” he hisses.
Chanyeol laughs. “He certainly is. My mate, the fancy veterinarian alpha,” he sings, and then launches into an epic tale of their meeting, Chanyeol pining after a med student in college until the man finally agreed to a date. Kyungsoo appears near the tail end and groans, adding snarky comments under his breath.
Jongdae jumps when the doorbell rings. Chanyeol hops up and talks cheerfully to someone on the other side and returns with a big brown bag. Jongdae discovers the joys of eating food out of a delightfully small folded box as Chanyeol and Kyungsoo chatter on the floor across from him.
“So you’re here to find your mate?” Kyungsoo asks, shoveling rice into his mouth.
Jongdae nods. “Well, I already found him. He just doesn’t think that I’m his mate, so I need to prove that we’re a good match.”
“Which is why he was looking for a job at the firm,” Chanyeol chimes in. Jongdae nods in affirmation.
Kyungsoo sets down his food. “Sorry, did you say you found your mate?”
Jongdae meets the alpha’s gaze, feeling a little unsure of himself. “Um. Yeah. I went to where he worked and he… didn’t think I was his mate. Even though he could smell me. He asked if I wanted money? But next time it will be different because I’ll have a job just like him and we’ll be together in no time.”
Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a glance and the latter joins Jongdae on the couch. “I don’t think that not having a job is your problem.”
Jongdae looks between the two wolves, frowning. “What do you mean?”
Reluctantly setting down his food, Chanyeol joins the two on the couch. “Jongdae, how much do you know about city wolves?”
Not much. He knows what he’s heard from members of his pack from the outside, and he knows stories of large buildings and crowds of people from talking with men and women from the nearby town that Jongdae’s pack trades food with. He’s never heard of Essence.
It’s a large company that had only cropped up in the last decade, Kyungsoo explains with a slight sneer, founded in this very city. A group of highly educated wolves had decided that they didn’t want to leave their mates to fate. Their other half could be poor, dumb, or not aesthetically pleasing. After a few years of experimenting, they had devised a procedure to find and produce the scent of any wolf’s mate. Then they opened to the public. With just a hair and a hefty amount of money, they can procure a bottle of personalized liquid love. Celebrities have been requested so often that they have shelves of just one scent. They can even finish a request within the hour.
Jongdae bites his lip. “Is Kim Joonmyun a celebrity?”
“Kim Joonmyun?” Chanyeol repeats slowly, and then makes a noise of realization. “Oh man.”
“He is?”
Chanyeol shakes his head. “He’s… a diplomat. Probably has had multiple accounts of fake mates. He’s, um, well known for being a bachelor ever since-”
“Don’t tell him about that,” Kyungsoo interrupts with a small glare. “There’s no need to make the situation worse.” He turns to eye Jongdae pitifully. “Are you going to stay? I understand if you want to head back to your home, in the woods.”
Jongdae shakes his head. “I’m his mate. If I’m not with him, then he’ll be alone.” He nods to himself. “I won’t leave until I convince Kim Joonmyun that I am his mate.”
Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a small smile. Chanyeol bumps his shoulder against Jongdae’s. “And we’ll be here for you, determined little woodsy wolf.”
Since Chanyeol and Kyungsoo share a modest one-bedroom apartment, Jongdae has to sleep on the couch. They give him a pillow and a blanket before bidding him goodnight and heading off to bed. Jongdae closes his eyes, exhausted, and then opens them not ten minutes later. He tosses and turns for a good few hours, then gives up and throws the blanket and pillow in a heap on the floor. He sets his clothes aside and shifts, jumping off the couch onto all fours. He stretches his limbs, taking a minute to get used to his form, and then curls up in the sheets.
When Kyungsoo passes him early in the morning, he smiles and scratches between Jongdae’s ears before donning a jacket and heading to work.
-
Jongdae likes his job. Often times, he finds himself forgetting the reason behind his employment, but then he catches a worker fetching a small bottle of what looks like perfume and spraying it over him or herself as a superior walks by and Jongdae glares at the worker. A few of the tiny glasses are found smashed to pieces in the break room throughout the week before Chanyeol calls him into his office and politely asks Jongdae to not tamper with the love lives of others (he had been contacted by a few enraged workers over the issue). Jongdae huffs but agrees, and just glares at the perpetrators.
During his time spent at work, he befriends an angry member of the IT department named Baekhyun, who regularly comes in to complain about things Jongdae’s never even heard about. He’s not a wolf, but he talks a lot, and Jongdae enjoys the silence being filled.
Baekhyun has just left so Jongdae’s filling time by stacking mugs when the door opens and Chanyeol pops his head in, a wordless signal that it’s time to go home.
As they walk back to the apartment building, Chanyeol looks over him. “Doesn’t it hurt, sleeping on the floor every night?”
Jongdae shakes his head. “The blankets are soft and I’m more comfortable as a wolf anyway. My pack and I would only shift when we had chores to do, or when we had to venture into the town, which was not often. It’s a little odd, having to walk around upright on two legs all the time.”
Chanyeol laughs. “Well, I suppose when you put it that way. I don’t think I’ve shifted since I was a kid, so I don’t know how I’d feel about that,” he muses, then frowns and drags his hands down his cheeks. “I’m getting off track! I was going to ask you if you wanted to go to a function with me this weekend. Kyungsoo’s got a surgery for a German Shepherd named Allan-he’s so cute but he has a broken leg at the moment-and I need a date!”
Jongdae blinks. “And your mate would be okay with that?”
“Kyungsoo? Yeah, he suggested it.”
“Oh,” Jongdae considers it, “If you would prefer having someone, I’ll go with you.”
Chanyeol beams and throws an arm around Jongdae. “You’re not going to regret this.”
-
“You knew he would be here.”
Chanyeol shrugs. “Maybe I did.”
Jongdae sighs and grabs another cracker from the platter. Kyungsoo had pulled out one of his larger tuxedos for the occasion, and between him and Chanyeol, they’d gotten it onto Jongdae after a little bit of grief. Jongdae does not like the tuxedo at all. It’s too stiff and it makes his skin itch, prickling with heat beneath the heavy layers. He can only hope that this will be a short affair, but then he catches a skinny man in the corner, talking to a shorter man with blond hair. He glares at Chanyeol and looks pointedly away from the man who smells like home.
An elbow digs into his side. “Now’s your chance,” Chanyeol hisses, gesturing to over where the skinny boy has left and the man is standing alone. “Go now, I’ll come and grab you when it looks like trouble.”
Jongdae’s pushed forward and he spares a second to glare at Chanyeol before sucking in a breath and continuing forward. It’s important to make the best of things. At least, that’s what he tells himself when he walks up to his mate, clears his throat, and says, “Kim Joonmyun.”
The man turns with a practiced smile on his face, which quickly falls when he sees Jongdae. “I thought I smelled a rat,” he spits, “How did you get in?”
“I came with Chanyeol,” Jongdae murmurs. He forgot how much the man hated him and wow, the words really sting.
“Park Chanyeol? The insurance firm?” Jongdae’s mate cocks an eyebrow and takes a sip of his wine. “I thought he already had a mate.”
“Oh, he does. Kyungsoo is very nice, it’s just that he has to perform a surgery tomorrow, so he couldn’t come,” Jongdae explains, elated to find that they’re having a conversation.
“I don’t understand,” he sounds genuinely confused. “How did you worm your way in, then?”
“I’m working as an intern for Chanyeol’s firm,” Jongdae chirps, proud of his accomplishments and overjoyed that he’s finally able to tell his mate about his escapades. “He and his mate are letting me stay with them until…” he trails off. He doesn’t think Joonmyun would appreciate hearing that Jongdae’s still set on becoming his mate and living together. “Until later.”
Joonmyun seems to be thinking and Jongdae eagerly waits for a reply. Though, when the man opens his mouth, Jongdae is yanked back by a hand on his shoulder.
“Hello, Mr. Kim, I do hope I’m not interrupting anything,” Chanyeol greets, then leans down to whisper in Jongdae’s ear, “The lackey is coming back with friends. Are you done?”
Jongdae peeks over Joonmyun’s shoulder and sees the skinny man talking to two men near the doors, sneaking glances towards where he’s standing. Jongdae bites his lip and realizes he’s about to be forced to leave if he doesn’t finish now. “It was, um, nice seeing you,” he murmurs, not looking at Joonmyun. Chanyeol leads them away with a hand thrown over Jongdae’s shoulders.
“So there wasn’t any shouting. I’d say it turned out well,” Chanyeol remarks with a hesitant smile. “What do you think?”
Jongdae nods. “He didn’t accuse me of being a fraud, so there’s that.” He frowns. “Well, not outright, at least.”
Chanyeol nods. “That’s a start.” He looks around. “I think I’ve talked to enough old men in fancy clothes for the day. Are you ready to head back?”
Jongdae replied in the affirmative. As the doors to the elevator close-Baekhyun had taught him all about the traveling box a few days back-Jongdae smiles to himself. “My mate changed his hair. It was brown, but now it’s blond.”
“Oh, I thought something about him was different.” Chanyeol presses the button before Jongdae can do it and grins triumphantly. “It looks good.”
“Of course it does,” Jongdae agrees matter-of-fact, and then leans over to hit Chanyeol when the man laughs heartily at him.
Joonmyun watches as the two men disappear from sight.
“Was he trying to threaten you or something?”
“No,” Joonmyun starts, still confused. “He wanted me to know he had gotten a job.”
“Weird.”
“Quite,” he agrees. He turns to face Sehun and eyes the phone still in his hand. “So is everything okay? No problems at home?”
“Huh? Oh, no. Jongin just wanted to complain about having to watch his sister’s kids. Says he’s going to make me stay next time. Then I guess one of the tater tots ripped out the phone cord because the line went dead,” Sehun says.
Joonmyun grins. “Are you sure you still want them?”
“Yes are you kidding me,” Sehun shouts, garnering attention from people nearby, “Jongin would make like the perfect dad.” Quietly he adds, “You’ll understand when you find your mate.”
The shorter man shrugs and smiles when Sehun’s phone goes off again and his secretary rushes off. Now alone, his gaze drifts back to the elevator.
-
Jongdae gets paid. It’s weird and a little confusing for all involved, because he has to drag Chanyeol down to payroll to explain that the money needs to be delivered to Chanyeol’s address and, whoops, they still need to find Jongdae’s government-issued identification that all people in the city have but they’ll hand it in as soon as they find it (no they won’t, because they’ll never find it).
But when they get home at the end of the next week, there’s an envelope waiting for Jongdae in the mailbox. He opens it excitedly and pulls out a smaller envelope and a piece of paper with a lot of writing and numbers on it. In the smaller envelope is a small pile of bills. Kyungsoo frowns at the amount and Chanyeol starts to apologize for the meager amount, but Jongdae is just confused as to what he’s supposed to do with the paper. He thought, for all the work he’d be doing, he’d at least be given cloth and food for his work. Even the people in the villages nearby his pack were generous enough to give actual clothes and juicy, ripe fruit in return for their kills.
When Jongdae says that aloud, however, all he gets is Chanyeol cracking up and Kyungsoo mussing his hair affectionately. They take him out for dinner and demonstrate what to do with the rectangular paper.
Jongdae goes out the next night, alone, and gets ice cream. He decides that life is wonderful and his paper is something to treasure.
Things get busier at work and Chanyeol can’t walk Jongdae home each day anymore. Jongdae assures him it’s alright and wanders around for a few hours before going home. He does this every day, and finds a small store that makes candies that remind him of home and he never fails to pop in and buy a bag on his way home.
At work, one of his superiors-not Chanyeol, surprisingly enough-commends his efforts and offers him a full-time job. When he reports the news to Baekhyun, the man snorts and tells Jongdae he’ll be making copies and coffees for the rest of his life. Jongdae cheers and demands a high five that Baekhyun reluctantly gives. Later, he wonders if his mate would be happy for him, too.
With his new paycheck, Jongdae has money leftover after buying his favorite candies. It takes him a few days to decide what he should do with it.
He runs into the store and gingerly shakes off his umbrella generously donated by Kyungsoo, who had shaken his head when Chanyeol and Jongdae tried to argue the joys of getting wet in the rain. “Respiratory virus,” the veterinarian had said, and Jongdae took the umbrella.
Jongdae dumps the bag of sweets on the counter and the older woman behind the desk smiles knowingly at him. “Will that be all?”
“No,” Jongdae starts, enjoying the surprised look he receives. “I think I want something else. Very sweet. What do you recommend?”
The woman smiles and Jongdae walks out of the store with a bag full of candy and a box of chocolates in a cute plastic bag with a happy face. The rain has picked up and the streetlamps are on, the last light of the day falling past the horizon. Jongdae opens his umbrella and prepares himself for the pelting rain just as a man in a suit turns the corner and starts hurrying his way. He has blond hair and Jongdae starts as a woodsy aroma assaults him and his throat constricts.
He finds himself on the other side of the street and at the man’s side before he knows what’s going on. “Kim Joonmyun,” he calls out, voice wavering.
The man stops and turns, hair plastered to his forehead and drops of water trailing down his face. Jongdae hurries over and quickly has them both under the cover of the white umbrella. “You again,” Joonmyun murmurs with a slight lilt of his lips, “And you have an umbrella. Did you plan this?”
“No!” Jongdae shakes his head. “I just saw you and I thought… Why are you out in the rain?”
“I suppose there isn’t any harm in telling you. My car won’t start and Sehun’s gone home already. A taxi is unnecessary and the rain wasn’t awful when I left, but it’s picked up a bit since. Is that all?”
“I like your hair,” Jongdae says under his breath, but Joonmyun either doesn’t hear or ignores him. He makes to step out from under the umbrella and Jongdae jumps into action. “No! It’s raining too hard. I’ll walk you home!” He tries his best not to sound too desperate but it’s painfully obvious that he’s really, really hoping for a yes.
“Do I really want you knowing where I live?” Joonmyun wonders aloud, almost indistinguishable from the loud pattering of rain. He sighs. “Okay.”
Jongdae grins and begins to walk, his mate matching his pace beside him. It’s nice, though they’re both keeping a fair amount of space between them so Jongdae’s arm is becoming quite soaked. He doesn’t really mind.
“This isn’t going to work.” Joonmyun stops and Jongdae has to backtrack, frowning worriedly. “You should go home anyway. It’s late.”
Jongdae shakes his head, thinking. “Wait. I can make this work.” He hands his bag and umbrella to Joonmyun, who merely stares at him with vague interest. He stares down at his clothes and is thankful that he decided against his nicer pair of jeans and then he shifts, the familiar tingling in his spine welcome as he falls onto all fours and works out the tightness in his shoulders before looking up at Joonmyun, tail wagging.
“I can’t believe you just did that in the open,” Joonmyun says, rolling his eyes when Jongdae yips in response. “Well, now that you’ve gone and done that, we may as well keep going.” He switches the bag to his other hand and carries Jongdae’s borrowed umbrella as he walks, Jongdae trotting along at his side. Rain falls around them and Jongdae is filled with a sense of contentment.
“It’s too quiet,” Joonmyun says, voice just loud enough to hear. “I’m used to mindless chatter when I walk, so I suppose I’ll have to supply it this time around.” He shakes the bag and adjusts his hold on the umbrella. “I don’t know why you’re trying so hard. Actually, maybe I do. Just a little. A while ago-if you can believe it-I wasn’t so cynical. I really did believe in destiny and that my other half was out there. When she came along she smelled just like you do and I thought, this it it. She’s the one.
“We dated for a short time, it was a little meaningless considering we were fated together, but I wanted to go through the motions. She was my first for many things. I proposed and we planned for the wedding. She planned for houses and children but I just planned on the wedding. I’m a fan of weddings. She had simple features and a slight figure; she would never stop complaining about finding clothes that fit her right. But in her wedding gown, she looked immaculate. I loved her even more.
“It was on our wedding day,” Joonmyun clears his throat, “Something was wrong. Terribly wrong. I saw her briefly in the morning and she looked frazzled which was understandable but she smelled differently. She was whisked away, so I couldn’t talk to her about it. Right before the ceremony, when everyone was preoccupied, I slipped away to see if everything was alright. When I opened the door she was spraying herself with perfume-all over. The bottle had my name on it. I cancelled the ceremony and told her I never wanted to see her again. As it turned out, she was only the first of many.”
Jongdae startles, jumping slightly when his paw connects with concrete and he looks up to see stairs. Joonmyun folds up the umbrella and shakes off most of the rain while Jongdae prances up the stairs and plops down on his butt, waiting for Joonmyun to come up.
“You’re walking me all the way to my room?” Joonmyun’s lips quirk up in a smile when Jongdae barks in answer. “Chivalry isn’t dead,” he mutters, opening the door for the both of them. He leads the way over to the stairs and Jongdae scampers after him, running up flights and then waiting for Joonmyun at the landing, tail wagging. They stop at the sixth floor, Jongdae hanging back to pad down the hall after Joonmyun. The man stops at a door and sets down the umbrella and bag, pulling out his keys.
“I was telling you all that so that you would know it wasn’t worth it,” Joonmyun says, turning the key in the lock, “Frankly, it’s selfish to go after someone else when you have someone who’s spent their whole life waiting for you. So stop.”
Jongdae cocks his head to the side.
Joonmyun sighs and stands in the open doorway, staring at the wolf that makes it almost up to Joonmyun’s chest when sitting down, and a strange look crosses his face. Jongdae’s tail ceases its movements as the man leans down and gently presses his face to Jongdae’s head. It lasts only a second, and then Joonmyun pulls back, a thoughtful look on his face. Then the door closes and Jongdae’s alone in the hallway.
He takes a moment, collecting himself, and then stuffs his face into the bag, searching until he finds the box of chocolates and carefully pulls them out with his teeth, leaning the box up against the door. Done, he gingerly picks up the bag and umbrella, careful not to tear either with his teeth. He runs all the way home, knowing these legs better than his other pair. The rain leaves him soaked as he scampers up to Kyungsoo and Chanyeol’s apartment so he sets the two items down and shakes himself off before pawing at the door.
It’s Chanyeol who opens it, and he takes one look at Jongdae before beaming. “Looks like you had yourself an adventure.”
-
Jongdae has a lot of time to think about Joonmyun’s words, seeing as he doesn’t so much as catch a glance of the man in the weeks that follow their confrontation. Again and again, he finds himself at the same decision. The city is a corrupt place, but his mate is a good person and Jongdae will wait years if he has to, because eventually he will be able to convince Joonmyun that he isn’t just another fraud.
Though, it’s hard to do that when he isn’t sure when exactly he’ll see the man again. Going back to the tall building is out of question, Jongdae doesn’t was to be thrown on the street again, so he bids his time by immersing himself in work. He becomes quite good at making coffee, and people begin leaving him tips. Jongdae creates little hearts in the foam atop each cup and looks up new designs. For a woman about to go on maternity leave, he gifts a large mug of hot chocolate topped with a smiley face and becomes somewhat famous for it. Chanyeol calls him the Coffee Connoisseur, which sounds cool even if Jongdae has no idea what it means.
“No, make more swirls,” Baekhyun demands.
“Don’t you have work to do?” Jongdae prods playfully, grinning outright when the man groans.
“Stop reminding me and just-”
Chanyeol steps into the room. “Can you go to an even with me this weekend? Kyungsoo’s got a parrot whose lost its voice and a litter of kittens with some kind of feline fever. Don’t make me go alone.”
Jongdae blinks. “This weekend?”
“Yes. Say okay.”
“Okay?”
“Yes I love you okay bye.”
Baekhyun glares at the ground. “Well I’m busy this weekend.”
-
“He’s not going to be here. Some conference overseas. He’s our representative and it’s a pretty big deal, a large step forward for someone maybe looking forward to a higher position. No chance he’d miss it.” Chanyeol frowns sympathetically. “Sorry.”
“No, it’s fine.” Jongdae grabs a handful of food from a tray. “So, who do you need to talk to first?”
They get through a handful of smartly dressed men and women, Jongdae standing aside and listening with slight interest as Chanyeol does his best to engage them in conversation and, by the end of the talk, have them intrigued by his firm. This is how the firm got so large, Chanyeol explains after handing out another of his business cards. Funding.
Jongdae doesn’t really understand, but he enjoys listening to the conversations. He sneakily continues to grab the odd morsels on the trays, nodding as he chews and listens to Chanyeol talk business. He understands why Kyungsoo doesn’t come to these things.
Chanyeol checks another person off his list and his business smile smoothes out into something more natural. He turns to Jongdae, about to say something, but stops when he sees someone approaching.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but do you mind if I borrow him?” Joonmyun asks with a polite smile, looking between the two of them after gesturing to Jongdae.
Chanyeol’s head snaps to look at the shorter man, unsure of how to answer. Jongdae nods. “You’re not interrupting anything. It’s fine. I’ll, um, see you later?” He says the last bit to Chanyeol, trying to reassure the man with a smile as he turns to follow Joonmyun, who had started walking away from the gathering as soon as Jongdae had given his answer. They head towards the elevators and Joonmyun presses the down button. Jongdae frowns. “Chanyeol said you weren’t going to be here.”
“I begged out at the last second. I had something more pressing.” Joonmyun states as the doors open and he pulls Jongdae in with him, causing the man to bump against his front while the doors close. “I’ve decided that I… want to try.”
Try. Jongdae’s eyes widen in realization and he surges forward, throwing himself onto the man. He can feel the laugh that Joonmyun gives in response, arms slowly coming up to wrap around Jongdae. “I’ve never had anyone quite as persistent as you.”
Jongdae flushes, hiding his face in Joonmyun’s shoulder. He breathes in the smell of Joonmyun, his mate, and he feels boneless.
The doors open and Joonmyun pulls away, hand on Jongdae’s wrist to keep him beside him. They head out to the lobby and stop. In the large windows, rain is pelting down. It had been clear when Jongdae got here, but he remembers something about a chance of rain.
“My apartment is three blocks away,” Joonmyun says, slowly heading towards the doors. When they reach the last barricade between themselves and the storm raging outside, Joonmyun turns to Jongdae, a glint in his eyes. Jongdae grins, tangles their fingers together, and pushes the door open.
They run as fast as they can, laughing breathlessly into the night, expensive clothes becoming more drenched by the second. Even when they make it to the building, they don’t stop, racing up the stairs and pausing outside Joonmyun’s apartment only long enough for the man to stop and fish out his keys.
They shut the door behind them and face each other. Jongdae is sure that the apartment is very nice, but he doesn’t want to take his eyes off of Joonmyun for even a moment. He gasps for breath, grinning when he sees that Joonmyun is doing the same. He lifts his free hand, cautiously bringing it up to smooth Joonmyun’s hair out of his eyes. He keeps his hand there when the man doesn’t object, running his fingers through the strands and fisting them loosely.
Joonmyun disentangles their hands. He reaches up and cups Jongdae’s face in his hands, thumbs smoothing over his prominent cheekbones. Jongdae’s hand falls to the back of Joonmyun’s neck when the latter leans forward and presses their foreheads together, breath mingling.
Jongdae closes his eyes when plush lips press against his own, one hand curled around Joonmyun’s neck and the other fisting in the soaked material of his suit jacket. It’s short, but when Joonmyun pulls away Jongdae follows and they kiss again, this time more insistent.
It’s a blur as they shed clothes and fall onto the bed in another room, Jongdae desperate and wanting but Joonmyun keeps pulling away. Finally, he begs to be touched and Joonmyun whispers into his ear, “I won’t make you mine. Not tonight.”
Jongdae groans. “Joonmyun, touch me. Please,” he whines, head clouded and still-slick skin too hot. He sucks in a breath when Joonmyun reaches in between them grab his hard length. Jongdae moans low and digs his fingers into Joonmyun’s back.
Joonmyun holds both of their cocks and strokes them together. Jongdae gasps as he nears his end entirely too quickly, feeling like putty in Joonmyun’s sure hands. He comes with a cry of his mate’s name and struggles to catch his breath, eyes glues to Joonmyun’s face as he strokes himself to completion, cum landing on Jongdae’s already dirtied stomach.
He finally has his mate, his other half, in his arms. Jongdae beams with happiness and rolls them onto their sides, drinking in the smell of Joonmyun and drifting off.
“Jongdae,” Joonmyun grunts, “You’re covered in cum. You need a shower.”
Jongdae grunts his disagreement, but follows when Joonmyun pulls his up and leads him into the shower. Jongdae wraps his arms around the man’s middle as they step under the warm spray, and Joonmyun stays in his hold, only taking a step away to wash Jongdae’s front.
They stand under the warm spray for longer than they need to, pads of their fingers and toes growing wrinkly. Jongdae begins to doze off, but has a moment of clarity when Joonmyun gently nuzzles his face into his neck.
“We never took showers together, her and I,” he whispers into Jongdae’s skin, “I thought it was because she was shy. But the perfume washes off.” He breathes deeply into the juncture of Jongdae’s shoulder and neck and the sleepy man can feel the smile on Joonmyun’s face. “You are mine.”
Jongdae whimpers when Joonmyun nibbles his skin, leaning his head back on the tile wall. “I am yours,” he agrees.
He’ll tell Chanyeol and Kyungsoo tomorrow. For now, he’ll enjoy this for as long as he can.
-
Joonmyun is awoken by something lapping at his face. Groaning, he reaches up to push the perpetrator away and slowly opens his eyes. “Jongdae, it’s too early for this.”
The gray wolf yips happily, tongue lolling out of his mouth. He has Joonmyun trapped, paws on either side of the sleeping man. Lately, he’s been trying to sleep in his bipedal form but to no avail. It’s not comfortable and it feels unnatural. So, instead, he’s decided to try and convince Joonmyun to sleep in his wolf form. This is a very important undertaking, as he’s never even seen the man as a wolf.
He won’t give up.
Joonmyun pulls the blanket over his head and Jongdae huffs, pawing at the material in annoyance, barking happily when Joonmyun’s face appears, the glare he’s giving not effective at all.
“If I shift, will you stop?”
Jongdae rears his head back and howls, shifting on his legs happily when Joonmyun hisses at him to stop, goddammit, it’s six in the morning. He lowers his face and tentatively licks Joonmyun’s nose, pleased with himself when he earns a small smile. Joonmyun closes his eyes and tenses his body.
Jongdae blinks and he’s on his back, at the foot of the bed. He jumps to his feet and rests his chin on the bed, tail wagging.
Joonmyun is gorgeous.
If it wasn't clear that he was an alpha before, it certainly is now. In Joonmyun's place stands a dark wolf, powerful muscles tensed beneath the thick coat of hair. He doesn't have a single scratch on him, unlike many of the alphas Jongdae's chanced upon before, but Joonmyun radiates an energy that leaves Jongdae wondering if any wolf would dare try and leave a mark upon him.
The wolf huffs when Jongdae doesn't so much as blink, and flops down on the bed. On his side, limbs sprawled, he takes up almost the entire queen mattress.
Jongdae collects himself and nimbly hops onto the bed. He carefully pads over the comforter, stopping by Joonmyun's exposed belly. The wolf opens an eye and stares at Jongdae in question. The gray wolf drops down by Joonmyun's side, curling up into a ball and pressing his snout into Joonmyun's chest.
He closes his eyes in contentment when a tail is thrown over his back flank and Joonmyun shifts closer, fitting himself around Jongdae and resting his chin on Jongdae's head. He breathes in deeply and relaxes, snoring lightly when he falls asleep.
Jongdae stays awake, reveling in the feel of another wolf at his side. The smell of Joonmyun surrounds him and he nuzzles further into his other half. His mate.