II - A rough start

In this chapter, there will be:

- scenting (clothes, not each other)

- one of them might have a boner after scenting (any guess who?)

- a slight mention of pregnancy

- mention of degradation/bad treatment (how some Alphas think about Omegas)

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Yoongi still acts cold - he barely speaks with Seokjin, trying to avoid him as much as he can. He focuses on studying and he stays in the library to work on his essays and on his music, only going back to the dorm to sleep and eat what Seokjin leaves for him in the fridge. Namjoon nudges him from time to time to finally get a grip and try to open a bit towards Seokjin, but Yoongi always tells him the same thing - that he will. They just started living together, Yoongi still feels nervous around Seokjin, the alarms ringing in the back of his head whenever he meets with the Alpha late at night. It doesn't happen every day, so far Yoongi found Seokjin awake on two Tuesdays and Thurstdays, and he also met him last Friday. Yoongi wonders if Seokjin has late classes these days or if it's about something else.

After a while - about five weeks or so - Yoongi notices on himself that he doesn't feel as uncomfortable around Seokjin as he felt on the first days. Yoongi appreciates that Seokjin uses a scent blocker so he doesn't feel disturbed by his scent. He gets to know a few things about the Alpha - that he's having a part-time job at a small restaurant as a waiter, and that he's majoring in acting. Yoongi nods at that, glad that he found out the reason behind the fact why he met Seokjin on Tuesdays and Thursdays. His Omega feels relieved as well - poor thing feared that his mate is seeing someone else. Yoongi internally scolds his wolf before he shyly tells Seokjin that he's majoring in music production. Seokjin smiles at that, his eyes sparkling as he's eagerly waiting, wanting to know more about Yoongi, but Yoongi's too nervous to do so. Thankfully Seokjin doesn't push it, happy for every bit of information about Yoongi.

One morning, when Yoongi wakes up and gets ready, he goes to their small kitchen and opens the fridge, feeling hungry. He grabs a few ingredients for the meal he's thinking of, and he almost closes the fridge door before he decides to grab more of every ingredient.

Yoongi hums one of the melodies he's working on while he's making breakfast, cutting the veggies and whipping the eggs he took for the gyeran mari.

Once Yoongi's done, he takes a portion for himself and leaves the remaining food in the pan before he turns to the table and sits down. Yoongi takes bigger bites as he wants to leave before Seokjin wakes up, and after he's done (he pours the other half of the gyeran mari onto a plate) he quickly grabs his bag and leaves their dorm. Only a few minutes pass until Seokjin walks out of his room, rubbing his eyes, still sleepy.

"Hmm," Seokjin hums when the scent of something good hits his nose, and he's already walking towards the small kitchen before he knows it.

"Oh," he lets out as he sees a plate of still fresh gyeran mari on the counter. Yoongi made breakfast for him?

Seokjin's heart flutters at the thought, surprised by the nice gesture. Maybe they made a small progress after all.

Smiling a little, Seokjin takes the plate, grabbing a pair of chopsticks as well before he makes his way to the table and sits down. He stares at the food in front of him - it looks good as he can tell. Taking his chopsticks into his hand, Seokjin takes a bite of the food and puts it into his mouth.

A surprised hum slips through Seokjin's lips - it looks like Yoongi's a pretty decent cook. It's good, the seasoning is just right, the egg roll is fluffy and well made - not too dry but not raw either. Seokjin wants to take big bites but he wants to enjoy his breakfast for as long as he can, nodding and humming as he eats, his inner wolf's excited and happy that his Omega is taking care of him. Seokjin smiles a lot throughout the day, wondering what kind of food he's going to make for dinner - he wants something special. As they're living in the dorms, Seokjin has to choose carefully what he makes as the dorm has a small kitchen with a portable stove. After his classes end, Seokjin goes to the grocery shop nearby and buys the ingredients for the meal - he decides to cook Bulgogi. It takes a while to make, but Seokjin doesn't mind it at all.

Later that night, when Yoongi comes back to the dorm and walks to the kitchen, he opens the fridge as he's planning to eat something before he goes to sleep.

"Oh?" Yoongi murmurs as he sees that there's a bigger dosirak with a sticky note on it.

Thank you for the breakfast, it was delicious! I thought I'll make something different this time. I hope you'll enjoy your meal.

Seokjin

Before Yoongi can stop himself, he smiles as he grabs the box. He carefully takes off the sticker and leaves it on the counter while he puts his meal into the microwave. He's glad that Seokjin liked his food - Yoongi doesn't consider himself as a good cook, but he can make a few dishes.

As Yoongi takes out his dinner, he grabs the sticky note as well before he goes into his room. The Bulgogi is excellent - the flavours are in perfect harmony, Yoongi's sure that it's better than the ones you can eat at any restaurant. His inner Omega's so excited that he made his Alpha happy it's almost annoying for Yoongi.

Almost.

It soon becomes a habit - every day Yoongi wakes up and finishes his morning routine, he makes something for Seokjin. He tries to not cook the same dish every time, and maybe he searches for new recipes after a while, but he would deny that if anyone would ask. He would also deny that he keeps the sticky notes he finds on the dosiraks Seokjin leaves for him from time to time.

The weather's getting warmer, the foliage of the trees fully growing out as the time goes by, and Yoongi notices that his inner wolf gets excited whenever he knows that Seokjin's going to be awake when he gets back to the dorm. Even though Yoongi doesn't feel as nervous around Seokjin - they even chat a little if he meets Seokjin during the nights when the Alpha's awake or during the weekends when they're both at the dorm -, he still doesn't want to get closer to Seokjin in a romantic way. Yoongi's Omega doesn't like this one bit, he wants to be touched and hugged and scented by the Alpha who he's meant to be with. It gets annoying for Yoongi and he has no idea how he can calm his inner wolf down as he feels distressed, distracting him from concentrating during the classes and studying at the library. Also, Namjoon is still bugging him to go back to the dorm sooner whenever they're hanging around after the classes.

Yoongi finds a solution by accident.

After a long session of working on his essay, all Yoongi wants is to take a hot shower and go to sleep. His inner Omega whines when Yoongi realises that Seokjin's probably went to sleep earlier even though he had a shift at the restaurant he's working at. Rolling his eyes, Yoongi walks towards the bathroom and without knocking he opens the door.

The first thing Yoongi sees is Seokjin's broad, bare shoulders, then he can't help but lower his gaze towards Seokjin's tiny waist, and the curve of his-

"Yah!" Yoongi startles at the sudden voice, making him lift his head up. Seokjin's eyes are wide open as he stares at him above his shoulder, his arms covering his groin even though Yoongi can't see it at this angle.

"Ah, I- fuck, I'm so sorry!" Yoongi says, and he wants to leave, but his legs don't want to cooperate. He takes a deep breath in surprise and his inner wolf lets out a content sigh, then all Yoongi can feel is how his chest is filled with warmth, how his muscles relax.

"It- it's fine, just- could you leave, please?" Seokjin pulls Yoongi back to reality with his question, still covering himself with his hands in the shower.

Yoongi takes another breath, and his Omega starts purring as he exhales it. It takes a few seconds for Yoongi to recollect himself, and after another apology he steps back and closes the door in front of himself. With wobbly legs, Yoongi walks back into his room and sits down onto his bed, leaning back to lay down with a small huff.

What the hell just happened? Yoongi asks himself internally, trying to figure out the answer. His inner wolf lets out a weak whine, his chest aching with longing but he notices how he doesn't feel as distressed as before. Which is odd because he was in such a bad mood all day, and now… it's gone.

'Alpha', Yoongi hears his Omega's voice echoing in his head, and Yoongi takes a deep breath instinctively. Once Yoongi realises what happened, he sits back up on the bed.

"It's his scent," he murmurs. Yoongi's so used to that Seokjin uses a scent blocker that he completely forgot that it has an effect on him, and it looks like that in this case it calms Yoongi's inner wolf down. It makes sense if Yoongi thinks about it - they're supposed to be mates, of course their scents can be comforting for each other.

As he gets to this conclusion, Yoongi starts to wonder if Seokjin's Alpha feels in a similar way like his Omega - probably yes, who knows, maybe it's even worse for him? The guilt rushes over Yoongi, his shoulders dropping at the realisation that he unintentionally hurt someone in a way. He wants to make it up somehow, but it would be weird to apologise - what could he even say? "I'm sorry if the absence of my scent made your Alpha uncomfortable or distressed."? Yeah, that wouldn't sound weird at all.

Groaning, Yoongi lays back on his bed again and covers his face with his forearm. What should he do now?

While Yoongi is in his room, wondering, Seokjin is standing at the sink, staring at his reflection in the mirror. He's still shocked that Yoongi came into the bathroom while he was showering. A part of Seokjin - his inner wolf - is glad that Yoongi's finally at home, but still, this was quite surprising.

After Seokjin takes his clothes on and goes into his room, he replays everything that just happened a few minutes ago as he lays down onto his bed. Yoongi seemed just as shocked as Seokjin felt when he opened the door, but the Omega only moved when Seokjin asked him to. There was something that glued Yoongi at the door, staring at Seokjin, his chest noticeably moving like he took a deep breath.

"Was it… was it because of my scent?" Seokjin asks softly, even though he already knows the answer.

Since the day Yoongi moved in, Seokjin started using a scent blocker - knowing how uncomfortable Yoongi is around him, Seokjin makes sure to cause less struggle to Yoongi. Seokjin hates it, his Alpha wants to calm his Omega down with his scent, but because of the blocker he can't do that. The fact that Seokjin can't smell Yoongi's scent doesn't help either, especially as during these past weeks he - and his inner wolf - is already distressed whenever Yoongi's not around him. Which - sadly - happens a lot as they don't share any classes and Yoongi comes back to the dorm late.

Seokjin tries to recall if he'd ever smelled Yoongi's scent, and he pouts as he realises he hasn't done it yet. He's sure it's uncomfortable for Yoongi too, not being able to smell his own or even Seokjin's scent.

A light knock on the door pulls Seokjin out from his thoughts - Seokjin sits up on his bed, frowning. A few moments later he hears another round of knocking, a little louder this time. Seokjin stands up and walks towards the door, opening it. He can only look at Yoongi's eyes for a moment before the Omega lowers his gaze.

"Yes?" Seokjin speaks as Yoongi stays silent.

"I-I just wanted to apologise," Yoongi stutters a little and takes a big breath. "I'm sorry," he says and lowers his head in a bow, his cheeks red as he looks at Seokjin again.

"It's okay, I was just surprised, that's all," Seokjin says, his grip tightening on the door knob. He notices how Yoongi takes another deep breath, then his shoulders seem less tense as he exhales. Seokjin realises that he didn't put a scent blocker, so Yoongi can smell it. He takes a step back, blushing, getting the Omega's attention.

"What is it?" Yoongi asks with a frown.

"I… I don't have a scent blocker on," Seokjin replies. "I never use it after I take a shower, so… sorry."

"Ah, about that," Yoongi starts, but he nibbles his bottom lip for a few moments, staying quiet. Seokjin can see that Yoongi wants to say something, but he's probably trying to find the right words. "Can I ask you a question?" Yoongi asks at the end.

"Sure," Seokjin says, a bit surprised as it's not what he's expecting.

"Is it possible that my Omega can feel less distressed because of your scent?" Seokjin can see how red Yoongi's cheeks are, he must feel incredibly nervous and embarrassed.

"Yes, it's possible," Seokjin replies, his brows furrowing. The way Yoongi acted when he opened the bathroom door makes sense for Seokjin now.

"I see…" Yoongi trails off, standing from one foot to the other. "So, that means that my scent would make your Alpha feel better too?" The way Yoongi is looking at him makes Seokjin's heart ache, he can see sadness and guilt in his eyes.

Seokjin doesn't expect this kind of reaction from Yoongi - that he's feeling guilty because of this. Yes, Yoongi's still acting a little colder towards him, but Seokjin can sense that it's not that bad like it was at the beginning.

"...yes, it would," Seokjin admits, and he knows this is unfair, that maybe he should lie, but he can't do that to Yoongi.

Yoongi nods at that, biting into his bottom lip. He unintentionally takes another breath, closing his eyes for a moment before he opens them again and looks at Seokjin.

"I… I'm sorry, but I'm not brave enough to stop using the scent blocker," Yoongi says, his voice a bit shaky.

"That's understandable," Seokjin says, and he means it - looking at how shy Yoongi is, it must be already so hard to be around so many people after being a private student for years, so he wants to mingle in the crowd, avoiding to get the attention of Alphas because of his scent. But they still don't have a solution to their problem. "Hmm," Seokjin lets out as he starts thinking, trying to find a way that can help them both.

"Uh…" Yoongi speaks up after a short while, his cheeks flushed red again. "Could you… could you give me some of your clothes that have your scent?"

The question takes Seokjin off guard, and he needs a few seconds to realise why Yoongi asks him such a thing - Seokjin is mostly not awake yet or already in bed when Yoongi's around, so they barely meet in person. But if Seokjin would give Yoongi a few of his clothes, it would help Yoongi feel better.

"Yes, I can do that," Seokjin replies.

"Thank you!" Yoongi bows his head, nibbling his lips as he lifts his head back. "I… I can do the same?" It's more like a question, Yoongi's eyes looking everywhere except Seokjin's face.

"Only if that's okay with you," Seokjin says, ignoring the way his own cheeks are burning.

"Mhm," Yoongi hums in agreement. "I'll go and get some of my stuff then," he adds and before Seokjin can say anything else, Yoongi's already gone, the door of his room closing, leaving a dumbfounded Seokjin behind.

Yoongi feels like he's going to have a heart attack.

It takes him several minutes to calm down at least a little, and even more to actually move from where he is - sitting at the door, his hand fisting the cloth at his chest, feeling his still rapidly beating heart.

After a while, Yoongi slowly gets up and goes to his closet. Deciding which clothes he should give to Seokjin is harder than he thought, but he can eventually choose a shirt and a hoodie he wears a lot when the weather gets colder. He takes them closer to his face, taking a deep breath to check out if they still have his scent - and they do, Yoongi can smell it. Once Yoongi nicely folds the shirt and the hoodie, he gets up from his bed and slowly opens the door of his room, peeking out to see if Seokjin came out or not. Thankfully Yoongi can't see him anywhere, so he slowly walks out of his room and leaves his stuff in front of Seokjin's door, then he goes back into his own room and goes to sleep.

The next morning, Yoongi almost steps onto a heap of clothes when he wants to go into the kitchen to make breakfast. God, Yoongi wants to hide in his room and scent Seokjin's shirt - so does his inner wolf -, but he suppress the urge and just leaves the nicely folded clothes on his bed and grabs his bag before he closes the door behind him, not even looking back as he goes into the kitchen.

Unfortunately Yoongi can hardly focus on his lectures during the whole day, shushing his Omega's whining with annoyance and tries to continue on focusing on what the professor is saying.

He can't concentrate above his books in the library either, which is already annoying, but the smirk Yoongi sees on Namjoon's face when he sees Yoongi's impatience only intensifies his annoyance.

It only takes Yoongi an hour or so until he can't hold himself back anymore.

"Would you stop that?"

"Stop what?" Namjoon asks back.

"Smirking oh-so-knowingly," Yoongi replies, rolling his eyes.

"I'm not doing that?" Namjoon's statement is more like a question, and he looks at the book on the table to avoid eye contact with him.

"Yes, you do. Why are you doing it anyway?"

"I just said I didn't do anything, hyung," Yoongi feels like something snaps in him at the way Namjoon's trying to act innocent.

"Yes you do! Yes, I'm distracted all day, so what? Am I not allowed to do that?" It's pretty uncommon for Yoongi to raise his voice up, and Namjoon's surprised look is a confirmation to that.

"Okay, okay, maybe I smirked once or twice, but I didn't mean to annoy you with it," Namjoon lifts his hands up. "I'm sorry."

They stay silent for a few moments, Namjoon looking everywhere but Yoongi's face while Yoongi takes his bottom lip between his teeth in his nervousness.

"I'm the one who should apologise," Yoongi mumbles, the guilt bubbling up inside him. "I just…" he trails off, feeling too shy to tell the reason why he's acting like this today.

"You don't have to tell me if you're not ready, hyung," Namjoon reassures him with a smile.

"Thank you, Joonie," Yoongi's chest aches, he doesn't deserve such a good friend like Namjoon.

"Don't even mention it," Namjoon waves with his hand, his smile widens, showing his dimples. "Do you want to continue studying or want to go back to the dorm?"

"I… I don't think I can concentrate today," Yoongi admits shyly. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay, don't worry. See you tomorrow then?" Namjoon asks, adjusting his glasses.

"Mhm," Yoongi hums and slowly stands up, keeping eye contact with Namjoon while he puts his books and notes back into his bag. "Bye for now," he adds, and at Namjoon's nod he makes his way out, still feeling a bit guilty as he goes.

Thankfully Seokjin's not at the dorm when Yoongi gets back. It's so strange to be there so early as Yoongi stays in the library until late at night. Yoongi walks into his room, and after he grabs some spare clothes - avoiding even looking at Seokjin's hoodie and shirt on his bed - he goes into the bathroom. He makes sure to rub off the scent blocker from his skin, a relieved sigh slipping through his lips as he smells his own scent.

Once Yoongi's done, he dresses up and after he makes sure that Seokjin's still not around, he goes back into his room. He can't help but swallow as his eyes land on Seokjin's clothes, looking at them while he walks towards his bed and sits down onto the mattress.

His Omega is all over the place at this point, if Yoongi would let himself to be led by his instincts he would jump onto the clothes and bury his face into them. But Yoongi stays focused, and after he finally gathered enough courage he reaches out towards the clothes. The hoodie is soft under his fingers as he tightens his grip and takes it into his lap, still hesitating a little. It just feels so awkward, Yoongi has never done anything like this before - to scent someone's cloth -, and he never heard or asked anyone about how it should be done. But he wants to give it a try, hoping it'll help his Omega and he won't feel that distressed. With that in mind, Yoongi slowly lifts the hoodie up to his face and closes his eyes, taking a deep breath.

The faded scent of fig leaf hits his nose, but it's definitely there, Yoongi can smell it - it's fresh and fruity with a hint of bitterness. Yoongi can feel how his muscles relax, a low hum resonating in his chest, his Omega enjoying the scent of his Alpha. Yoongi takes another breath, and now he can sense another scent - it's cedar, woody and smokey, giving ground to the scent of the fig leaf. Yoongi feels how his inner wolf lets out a low whine at the second intake of Seokjin's scent, and he has to bite into his lip to not let it slip out from his mouth.

Lowering the hoodie, Yoongi takes a few deep breaths, his Omega happily humming as he can still smell the mixture of fig leaf and cedar. He looks at the cloth in his lap for a few moments, then he glances at the shirt which is still laying a few inches away from him. Should he… try out the other one? You know, just testing if he can notice more details in Seokjin's scent.

As curiosity wins over him, Yoongi lets the hoodie go and grabs the shirt into his hand, this time lifting it to his nose without any hesitation, then he inhales deeply. Probably Seokjin was wearing it only a short while ago as his scent is stronger, Yoongi can identify both of the main components of his scent right away, and it's so good, making him crave for more, to rub his cheeks against the cloth, hoping it'll stay on his skin-

"No!" Yoongi lets out, dropping the shirt onto the mattress so fast like it's burning his skin. He's breathing heavily, his cheeks are burning, and he can sense that his pulse is higher as well. The urge to grab the shirt and smell it again is strong, the whine his Omega lets out makes it even more intense, but Yoongi stays put, not letting his instincts take control over him. All of this, what is happening with him, how he reacts to Seokjin's scent is because of that stupid imprinting, and Yoongi can't give in so easily. He still wants to get to know Seokjin, and doing it in his own space, he doesn't want to rush it just because of his stupid instincts.

Deciding that this is enough for the day, Yoongi puts Seokjin's clothes onto the chair next to his bed and lays down on his bed, covering himself with the blanket. While he tries to fall asleep, he can't help but wonder about Seokjin. Will he react the same way as Yoongi did? Will Seokjin like his scent?

Just as the thought runs through Yoongi's mind, he unintentionally imagines Seokjin scenting his shirt with closed eyes, cheeks flushed pink, lips parted as he whispers his name. Yoongi shakes his head, trying to erase the image from his mind - he definitely should not think about anything like this.

With a huff, Yoongi turns to his side, trying to fall asleep. Usually, it doesn't take long, but this time he struggles with it, turning from one side to the other, adjusting to his pillow, hoping it helps but nothing works, he keeps staying awake.

Opening his eyes, Yoongi glances at the chair, taking his bottom lip between his teeth as he stares at Seokjin's clothes. His Omega lets out a quiet whine, and it's enough for Yoongi to give in. Whispering a curse, Yoongi sits up on his bed and grabs the hoodie, pulling it on before he can change his mind. He takes a deep breath, the mixture of fig leaf and cedar hits his nose, making his muscles relax.

"Oh, shut up," Yoongi murmurs when his inner wolf starts purring as he lays back and covers himself with the blanket. Feeling cozy and relaxed, Yoongi closes his eyes, and a thought barely runs through his mind - that he has to take the hoodie off tomorrow morning before leaving his room - before he falls asleep.

Seokjin is a mess.

He can't form a coherent word or thought, his mind is fuzzy, his Alpha is whining, desperately wanting to smell the shirt again.

The reason of Seokjin's state is that after a long, tiring day, he finally smelled Yoongi's scent for the first time. And fuck is it the best scent he had ever felt. It's a mix of tangerine and ginger, sweet and spicy, but Seokjin can also sense a hint of tartness, it's like the undertone of Yoongi's scent.

Omega, Seokjin hears his inner wolf's voice echoing in his head, and as he takes another deep breath, he can smell the fig leaf and cedar mixed with the tangerine and ginger, and a low moan slips through his lips before he can stop himself.

More, Seokjin's Alpha lets out, and even though it's tempting to give in to his instincts, Seokjin lowers the shirt from his face and lets his hand fall into his lap, the cloth partly covering his thighs and crotch.

"What am I doing?" Seokjin whispers, the guilt rushing through his veins, painting his cheeks and ears red as he feels how uncomfortable his pants are. He quickly gets to the conclusion that the reason behind his… intense reaction is the imprinting. Maybe he liked a few other Omega's scents during his university years, but none of them made him react like this.

But still, the fact that Yoongi's scent made Seokjin get a boner is quite embarrassing, to say the least. It's a field he's not familiar with, he doesn't know what he should do or how he should feel, and it's confusing. He wants to get closer to Yoongi, his Alpha wants it even more, but Seokjin knows he has to give more time to the Omega.

Seokjin's a bit worried about Yoongi - it will be quite an experience for him to smell Seokjin's scent for the first time. Seokjin can only hope that Yoongi's going to be fine.

With that in mind, Seokjin lays down on his bed, pulling Yoongi's shirt next to his pillow before he covers himself with his blanket. A content sigh slips through his lips as the scent of tangerine and ginger hits his nose, his Alpha happily purring. It doesn't take long until he falls asleep, his mind unintentionally whirling around Yoongi.

"Good morning!" Yoongi stirs a little at the sudden voice, turning his head above his shoulder to see Seokjin coming into the kitchen. Seokjin smiles at him as he stops at the counter and leans against it. "How are you doing?"

"Good morning," Yoongi greets Seokjin, but he feels too shy to keep eye contact so he looks back at the dirty plate in his hand. "I'm feeling good, thanks for asking," he replies as he continues washing the plate.

Yoongi feels more than good, he feels so relaxed, it's been months since he slept as good as last night. His Omega is happy too, finally at ease after he smelled his Alpha's scent.

But Yoongi will definitely not admit that.

"That's great!" Seokjin chirps, turning his head to the other side, his eyes finding the pan. "Oh, you're making kimchi fried rice?" Yoongi's glad that Seokjin's voice sounds excited - he was a bit worried when he decided to make this dish.

"Mhm, I left a bigger portion for you," Yoongi says, and he almost starts to feel nervous, but as he takes a deep breath he smells fig leaf and cedar, his Omega perking his head up in interest. The effect is immediate, Yoongi's muscles relax, his wolf purring happily, wanting to go closer to the elder to smell him again. It's not easy to not give in to his instincts, but Yoongi has his manners, and he's stubborn enough to get over this feeling and stay where he's standing.

"Oh, thank you!" Seokjin says, not noticing Yoongi's current state as he opens the cabinet to grab a plate for himself. He's glad that Yoongi seems calmer than last night, and he can't truly scold his inner wolf as he feels satisfied that it's his scent that helped Yoongi to feel better.

Seokjin grabs a pair of chopsticks and the plate, then he pours the still steaming rice onto his plate. The Omega just closes the tap at the sink, taking a step back before turning over and walks towards his own room. As he does so, Seokjin's almost a hundred percent sure that he felt his own scent on Yoongi - it's barely there, but Seokjin smells it.

It's pretty shocking for Seokjin, and it brings up dozens of questions in his mind, but the timing is terrible, so he has to shuffle them in the back of his head to think about them later.

He barely notices that Yoongi leaves his room and walks to the front door, getting ready to leave. It takes him a few more moments to come to his senses, turning his head just in time to see the closing door, his Alpha letting out a low whine at the sight.

Seokjin feels a bit overwhelmed, he doesn't know what to think about this - was it really his own scent that he smelled? It's a possibility, Yoongi did smell his scent after all. But if Seokjin could smell his own scent, that means that one of his clothes was close to Yoongi, like under his pillow or in his hands.

Or he was wearing one of them, the thought runs through Seokjin's mind.

"No, that can't be," Seokjin whispers to himself, shaking his head. No way that Yoongi slept with Seokjin's shirt or hoodie on him.

Still having too many questions about this, it takes a while for Seokjin to have his breakfast before he goes to his first class.

★★★

Yoongi has to admit that smelling Seokjin's scent helped a lot in the past two weeks - he sleeps much better, and he can concentrate during the classes for longer too. His Omega is happy and sated, satisfied that he can smell the Alpha's scent.

And it doesn't go unnoticed by Namjoon.

"What is it?" Yoongi asks, getting a little annoyed at the glances he's getting from Namjoon. Yoongi is a patient man, but this is the point where he lost it.

"Hm?" Namjoon asks back, trying to act oblivious, but Yoongi sees through him.

"Joonie," the tone of his voice is enough for Namjoon to give up, he lowers his head as he sighs before he looks at Yoongi again.

"I can't really explain it, hyung. You seem a little… different in the past, hm, two weeks or so? But in a good way," Namjoon says slowly. "You look relaxed, almost happy if that makes sense. Like you had a very good sleep or something."

Yoongi tries his best to not show how surprised he is - he didn't think that smelling Seokjin's scent would have such an effect on him.

"Well, I did have a good sleep, so maybe that's why you see a difference," Yoongi says casually as he focuses on his notes.

"Oh, that's good! Maybe you're getting used to sleeping somewhere else than your own room," Namjoon chirps, an understanding smile appearing on his face. Yoongi knows he should let this go, that he should stay quiet, but he can't do that, his conscience kicks in.

"Uh, actually," he starts, earning a raised eyebrow from Namjoon, "it's thanks to him that I slept well, so to speak."

"What?"

"Remember that imprinting stuff?" At Namjoon's nod, Yoongi continues. "Two weeks ago we found out that if we can smell each other's scents then we feel less distressed."

"So… you scented him?" Namjoon asks, his eyes widening. "Multiple times?"

"No, but I gave him a few clothes of mine and he did the same," Yoongi explains. "Since then I scented his clothes and that helped me," he feels how much his cheeks are burning, but he can't help it.

"Wow, that's… that's a pretty big deal, hyung," Namjoon mumbles slowly.

"Do you think so?" Yoongi asks shyly.

"Mhm. You barely talked with him at the beginning, or even had been in the dorms when he was there too. Look how far you've come, hyung - you trust him enough to share something with him that's yours. I think it's a big step."

Yoongi stays quiet, letting the words sink in. He probably doesn't see how long the path he took is because he's the one who's walking on it - but it's more visible from someone else's perspective. And, as Yoongi thinks about it, he decides that maybe he can take another step on this path.

"Maybe you're right, Joonie," he says, a smile forming on his lips as he makes an internal note about what he'll have to do when he gets back to the dorm.

He hopes that he won't regret his decision.

★★★

It takes a while for Seokjin to realise what changed, but to his defense, he still doesn't meet that much with Yoongi - even on the weekends when they have no classes, Yoongi barely comes out of his room. The first time he noticed the faded scent of tangerine, Seokjin thought it must be his imagination as he scented Yoongi's shirt the previous night. But he swore he smelled it again on the next day when he got home after his shift - again, he got to the conclusion that it was because he was so tired that he thought he felt it while he didn't.

But today, the third time in a row Seokjin gets the whiff of the scent of tangerine as he comes out from his room in the morning. He looks around as he goes towards the kitchen, realising that Yoongi's not there - he probably already went back into his room. As Seokjin walks to the counter to grab the meal Yoongi cooked - a nice bowl of gyeran bap -, he tries to figure out if he's hallucinating or the scent of tangerine is really there.

He hesitates a bit, but he eventually lowers his head to his shirt, sniffing at the fabric, assuming that maybe his shirt was next to Yoongi's and his scent got onto his cloth - but no, he can only smell fig leaf and cedar.

So, it's not on his clothes, which means that…

...that Yoongi stopped using his scent blocker. While he's in the dorm, Seokjin thinks - he's sure that Yoongi still puts it on when he goes to the classes.

It's still a pretty big thing though - it means that Yoongi feels comfortable and safe enough around Seokjin to stop using it while they're home. Seokjin truly appreciates it, not to mention how happy his Alpha is - it fills his chest with warmness.

Even the food tastes better after this realisation - Seokjin happily hums as he eats it all, smiling while he washes the dirty dishes after he's finished. He stops in front of Yoongi's room as he goes back towards his own, closing his eyes as he takes a deep breath. And there it is - Yoongi's scent is a bit more intense there, Seokjin can smell the faded scent of ginger too.

He knows he shouldn't stand there so he takes a step back and goes into his own room. He sits down at his desk and stares into nothing while he's wondering.

Should he thank Yoongi for this? It's such a nice gesture, Seokjin feels like he needs to show his gratitude somehow. But it would be so weird as they're still not that close to one another…

A thought comes into Seokjin's mind, and his lips part a little at the realisation - of course he should do as Yoongi did! What else can be a better way to say 'thank you'?

Nothing can make Seokjin change his mind - he doesn't allow himself to doubt or listen to that voice whispering in the back of his head. He knows he's making the right choice, he feels it in his guts (even his Alpha agrees).

He's doing the right thing, isn't he?

★★★

It doesn't take as long for Yoongi to notice Seokjin's scent - he smells it when he steps out from his room the next morning. It catches him off guard -it's been only a few days since he stopped using his scent blocker when he's at the dorm, he didn't think Seokjin would do the same as him.

He's still frozen in front of his door when Seokjin walks towards his own room with a mug in his hand.

"Good morning!" Seokjin greets him with a warm smile, and as Yoongi takes a breath, the scent of fig leaf and cedar hits his nose, making his Omega purr in happiness.

Shut up, Yoongi scolds his wolf and smiles back at Seokjin.

"Good morning," he says, glad that he's not stuttering. He knows he should say something, but he's still so shy around Seokjin, and he's not good at starting conversations either.

"I made some ramyeon," Seokjin says after a few moments of silence. "It's still warm if you're hungry. The kimchi is in the fridge," he adds, pointing towards the kitchen above his shoulder.

"You made breakfast?" Yoongi asks, his eyes widening a little, and he almost pouts.

"I woke up earlier, so I thought I should make it this time," Seokjin replies with burning cheeks.

"I see…" Yoongi mumbles, his heart fluttering a little in his chest at the sight. "Thank you," he adds, a small smile appearing on his face.

Without another word, Yoongi leaves Seokjin there as he makes his way to the kitchen. Seokjin takes a breath, smelling the scent of tangerine and ginger, a clear sign that Yoongi indeed doesn't have his scent blocker on. He watches as the Omega stops at the fridge, then goes to the counter with the kimchi in his hand, taking some into a tiny bowl before he turns over and walks to the table, holding the ramyeon in one hand, and the kimchi with the spoon and chopsticks in the other.

Yoongi glances up as he sits down, his cheeks going red a little when their eyes meet.

"Thank you for the meal," Yoongi mumbles, turning his gaze at the bowl in front of him.

"It's no problem, really. Enjoy," Seokjin says and goes into his room. He exhales as he leans back against his door, already feeling the urge to go back and talk with Yoongi while he's eating.

"Oh, shut up already," he scolds his Alpha who's whining, "I have to take things slow," he reminds his inner wolf - and himself - as he takes a seat at his desk, putting his mug down.

He knows it's hard, but he wants to let Yoongi be in control, to let him go at his own pace. He's sure that Yoongi has valid reasons for being so shy or why he was a private student for years. Seokjin can only imagine how hard it can be to be an Omega in the university, or in everyday life in general. Society is fucked up when it comes to them - their gender defines what type of jobs they can get, how they're treated during their lives. They're expected to be well-behaved, to bear the Alpha's pups and raise them while their mate's are at work. Omegas who have a nice career, a strong personality or even live without mates and standing on their own feet are looked down upon, treated like some kind of freaks by the majority of the society.

Seokjin has also met with Alpha's who basically saw Omega's as walking holes, or properties they can use - something he had never agreed with.

Not that being an Alpha doesn't have any disadvantages. If you're an Alpha, people will have expectations from you as well - you have to be tough, have strong willpower, not to mention that if you don't have a well paying job, you're not worthy to be called as one. He doesn't have to go far either, his own father thinks like that - in his father's eyes, being an actor is not what an Alpha should choose as a career path.

Seokjin hates that there are so many expectations for both Omegas and Alphas. You can't compare them either, because you can't say that it's easier to be an Omega or Alpha - it's not how this works, there are too many elements to look at.

Slightly shaking his head, Seokjin takes a sip from his tea and grabs his notes - he has to study if he wants to graduate. His father can think about him whatever he wants, Seokjin is going to be an actor.

★★★

Yoongi had no idea that smelling Seokjin's scent in the dorm could ease the remaining distress in him, but it works even better than smelling his clothes. He sleeps well, his Omega is happy and sated, and he feels much less anxious during the classes too. Even Namjoon is a bit surprised by his mood change, but as far as Yoongi can tell, his friend is happy for him.

It's also a good timing for Yoongi - he has to study for his final exams before the end of the spring semester, so the fact that he's not distressed or distracted helps a lot. As Yoongi looks back, it feels like these past three months passed by pretty quickly, and maybe he can say that his relationship with Seokjin got better. Probably not as good as it could be, but considering how it started, it's not that bad - they make breakfast and dinners for each other, Yoongi doesn't run away when he meets with Seokjin at the dorm or even at the hallways of the university, and they both stopped using their scent blockers when they know they don't go anywhere after their classes end, or when they stay there during the weekends. Seokjin even asked Yoongi to call him hyung a short while ago which still feels so unfamiliar to him, he has to remind himself to call Seokjin as hyung, not as Seokjin-ssi. He hopes he's going to get used to it soon.

Today though, Yoongi struggles a bit more with his project than he wants to; he's working on it with Namjoon - they have to write a lyric based on a beat their professor gave to them, and somehow they can't figure out a part, and they can't move on from there.

They've been spending the rest of the day in the library, only having a few bars of chocolate Namjoon bought for themselves, completely lost in their thoughts.

Yoongi's too stubborn to give up though, no matter how many times he scratches the lyrics he just wrote, he runs his fingers through his hair, takes a deep breath and starts over with his lips between his teeth. He doesn't notice how Namjoon is looking at him - with fondness, a small smile appearing on his face. That's one of the (many) things Namjoon likes about Yoongi - the determination he has, that he does his best at everything he's doing.

Just looking at Yoongi gives enough inner strength to Namjoon, so he takes a deep breath and focuses on the notes and reads what Yoongi wrote so far, thinking of how they can continue and finish the song.

They can do this, Namjoon believes in Yoongi and himself.

"What's taking so long?" Seokjin murmurs as he checks the time for the nth time. He's used to Yoongi staying in the library until late at night, only coming back around ten p.m., but it's half past eleven and he's still not in the dorm yet. His Alpha is distressed too, his whining echoing in Seokjin's head, worry bubbling up in his stomach because of it.

"Okay, that's it," Seokjin says as his worry grows on him, standing up from the couch with a huff, "I'm gonna take him home."

And with that, Seokjin slides into his shoes, putting his phone into his pocket before he takes his leather jacket on - the nights are still cold -, locking the door as he leaves. He doesn't meet anyone on his way towards the library, another sign that it's pretty late.

The lights on the hallway give a spooky atmosphere as he walks, but he doesn't care about it, he's determined to find Yoongi.

Thankfully once Seokjin steps into the library, it doesn't take him long until he finds Yoongi.

"Oh," he lets out at the sight. Yoongi's sleeping - his head laying on a bunch of notes, his arms resting next to his head, a few crumpled paper balls surrounding him. Next to him Seokjin sees another guy, sound asleep as well, having a similar position than Yoongi.

Seokjin's Alpha lets out a low growl, feeling threatened. Seokjin takes a deep breath but he can't smell the guy's scent, so there are two options: one, he's using a blocker, and two, he's a Beta - they don't have as intense, noticeable scents like Alphas or Omegas do.

As Seokjin looks at the guy, he can't tell which one he is - his physique is more like what an Alpha would have, but Seokjin knows that he shouldn't make too rushed accusations.

His breath stops for a moment when he notices that the guy's body stirs, squeezing his eyes before he slowly lifts his head up. When their eyes meet, the guy's lips part a little, his brows going up.

"Oh, hello there," the guy says, his voice low and raspy as he just woke up. Seokjin stays silent while the latter scans his surroundings, his gaze stopping at the still sleeping Yoongi. "Ah, we fell asleep," he adds, scratching his head, his cheeks getting a shade of pink.

"Looks like it," Seokjin comments, and maybe he sounds a bit rude but he's been so worried for Yoongi, it's hard to take his emotions and his instincts under control.

"You must be Seokjin-ssi," the guy says as he leans back in his seat, and Seokjin can't hide his surprise as he raises an eyebrow. Staying silent, Seokjin nods. "I'm Namjoon. Don't worry, I won't take him away from you."

"I'm no-" Seokjin tries to speak, but Namjoon's glance, he stays quiet.

"I know about the imprinting - Yoongi told me the day he moved in with you at the dorm," Namjoon explains, and even though they don't talk that much, Seokjin can't help but feel a little hurt as Yoongi has never told that Namjoon is such a close friend of his, only mentioning that sometimes they're working together on projects.

It must be seen on his face as Namjoon's expression changes. "Please give him some time," Namjoon says softly. "He's… he has his demons and it's a long process for him to defeat them. He wants to get to know you better, to be more at ease around you, but the thing that happened to him in the past is still haunting him."

"Does that have anything to do with why he became a private student?" Seokjin asks, but he's not sure he's ready for the answer.

Namjoon scans his face in silence for a few moments, and Seokjin feels like the latter can see into his soul.

"That's something you have to ask from him when the time comes," he replies, showing a sad smile. "All I can do is ask you to wait for him."

"I'm trying, but I don't know how long I can do this," Seokjin admits, lowering his head. "I don't know what happened with him back then, and I do my best to give him space, to let him take the next steps, but…" he trails off, sadness and guilt bubbling in his chest, his Alpha whining because of it.

"He'll open up for you eventually," Namjoon reassures him, "he did it for me, and I'm sure he's going to do it for you, too."

"I hope you're right," Seokjin mumbles, and they both look at Yoongi - surprisingly, he's still sleeping. With a small smile, Seokjin leans closer to Yoongi, gently putting his hand onto his shoulder. "Yoongi?" He calls him, his voice just above whispering.

Yoongi stirs a little, letting out a low hum as he lifts his head up, blinking a few times. His brows furrow when he registers that it's Seokjin who's standing next to him.

"Hyung?" Yoongi speaks, half asleep. "Did something happen?" He asks innocently, like he didn't just fall asleep in the library in the middle of the night. Silly Omega, Seokjin's inner wolf scolds him, and Seokjin can't help but agree.

"Oh, nothing serious, you just scared the hell out of me with not coming back to the dorm at such a late hour," Seokjin replies with a monotone tone, raising one of his eyebrows. As he hears a little chuckle, he looks at Namjoon. "You don't just chuckle here, Namjoon-ssi, you're just as reckless as him," he adds. At least Namjoon shows regret as he lowers his head to hide his flushed cheeks.

Putting his hands onto his waist, Seokjin gives them a glare. "Come on, you two, it's time to go to bed," he says.

After they both apologised they start to collect their stuff and clean up the mess they made (Gosh, how could they waste so much paper?), they follow Seokjin, their heads still low as they walk. They stop at the entrance of the library, and after Namjoon bids his goodbye he leaves (his dorm room is in another building).

Seokjin glances at Yoongi who watches Namjoon for a few moments while he's chewing his lips before he turns back and starts walking. Seokjin follows suit, taking his pace in sync with Yoongi's.

Yoongi's glad for the silence, he can use this opportunity to process everything he heard a short while ago - because he was awake when Seokjin and Namjoon had that little conversation.

In the back of his mind Yoongi has always known that it must be hard for Seokjin, that it's not fair of him to make the Alpha wait for such a long time, but Namjoon was right - Yoongi is still fighting against his own demons. He's aware that he should give in, to give Seokjin a chance, but he's terrified to do so.

Even if he could fall in love with Seokjin, he wants his emotions to be real, to be sincere, not because of this stupid imprinting thing. That would feel like he's cheating, that he'd be under some kind of magical spell, that his emotions would be fake.

He can't tell if he could fall in love with Seokjin. Yes, he was handsome and caring and maybe he's funny, but these are not enough to fall in love with someone, right?

'You'll never know if you don't give him a chance', Yoongi hears his conscience, his Omega fervently nodding in agreement. Yoongi takes a glance at Seokjin who's walking next to him silently, his eyes focusing on the path in front of him. Now or never, Yoongi thinks and clears his throat, getting the Alpha's attention.

"I- I would like to apologise," Yoongi starts, earning a frown from Seokjin.

"What for?"

"About everything - that I'm still avoiding you most of the time, that I take things so slowly, that I… that I made you suffer back then," Yoongi mumbles, pointing out that he only realised weeks later that his scent helps Seokjin. "I decided to move into the dorms and finish university like you and every other student do, but I never signed up for this imprinting thing, and I don't know how to handle it. I can't put this aside like you do, it's always in the back of my mind, and it makes everything harder than it should be, and I… I'm scared," he rambles at the beginning, but his voice becomes a whisper at his last words.

Silence settles between them for a short while, and all Yoongi can see is how a small smile appears on the Alpha's face. What does that mean? Is Seokjin happy? Sad? Relieved? Why does this feel so hard for Yoongi?

"It would be a lie to say it's easy," Seokjin speaks up, his voice soft, "but I think I'm the one who should apologise."

"Why do you think that?" Yoongi asks, completely confused.

"Because I'm impatient when I know that you need more time to get used to all of the changes that have happened to you. You've been a private student for years, and you barely interacted with anyone except your family and Namjoon. You can't change overnight, and I should've known that instead of asking so much from you."

Yoongi's chest tightens and warmness blooms inside of it at the same time, his eyes start to burn at Seokjin's words. He feels like he doesn't deserve such kindness from Seokjin, not this much. It helps Yoongi, giving that little push to decide that it's right about time to take the next step, to open up a bit more towards the Alpha.

"Still, I think…" Yoongi takes a deep breath, his inner wolf letting out a worried whine, "I think we should move forward."

"In what way?" Seokjin asks, his brows furrowing.

"Like… being around each other more? I mean, to have breakfast and dinner together, or just… enjoy each other's company…?" Gosh, Yoongi hates how much his cheeks are burning, but he has to do this for both of their sake.

"Oh, that's- that would be a good start," Seokjin says, and Yoongi's almost sure that the Alpha's blushing too. "And to be clear, I will not do anything you're not comfortable with."

"Thank you," Yoongi says, his lips forming a small smile as he glances at Seokjin.

Maybe it is not going to be as bad as Yoongi thought so.

Right?