Archive of Our Own ^beta

month one.

You know that feeling when you’re dreaming and suddenly you’re pushed off a cliff or plunged into deep, cold water? The fear of falling to your death or the burning sensation of water filling your lungs jolts you awake and then you’re both scared and relieved that it was a dream.

This is not a dream.

His best friend since they were freshmen in high school, the beautiful, omega Park Seonghwa, really just asked if he could have Hongjoong’s baby.

Hongjoong feels like he’s simultaneously falling and drowning at stupid-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM), and he definitely cannot get back up.

“Hongjoong?”

Hongjoong startles so bad he nearly knocks over his glass of water. His hand brushes against the glass and the liquid sloshes around dangerously with some of it spilling over the rim and onto the table.

The blonde alpha stares at the water now surrounding the base of his glass.

Seonghwa stares at him. 

Their familiar waiter, Wooyoung, also stares at him.

“Are you alright?” Seonghwa asks him as the waiter utters out, “I can come back.”

“Yes,” Hongjoong croaks out in reply to Seonghwa but Wooyoung, thinking that response was also meant for him, starts to shuffle away when Hongjoong flaps a hand at him, “no!”

“Do we need to leave?” Seonghwa whispers in concern, thinking the ‘no’ was Hongjoong changing his mind.

“Are you ready to order…?” The waiter politely prompts.

Hongjoong is so overwhelmed. He weakly points to the first thing his finger is closest to on the laminated menu and frowns as he’s mid-sentence, but it’s too late now. “I’ll have the… Fruit salad.”

Well, fuck. His mind is a mess and now he’s going to hate his breakfast.

“You hate both of those things,” the omega vocalizes what Hongjoong was just thinking and holds up his own menu to the waiter to gain his attention, “please disregard that. He’ll have the smoked salmon eggs benedict, no chives, and the sauce on the side, please. And I’ll get the house breakfast with scrambled eggs and sausage. White toast with whatever jam you have, thank you.”

“You got it,” the waiter plucks the menu out of Seonghwa’s hand and gives the frazzled Hongjoong a hesitant look before collecting his menu as well. “I’ll grab you more napkins,” he says in relation to the water spill.

“Thank you,” Seonghwa says again and when Wooyoung is out of earshot, the raven haired man leans over the table of the booth slightly to repeat: “Are you okay?”

The alpha gives his best friend a tight lipped, wide eyed look. He tries to school it into something more neutral, but his thoughts are running a mile a minute and he can’t seem to get his brain to communicate to his face to relax. “Yes.”

Seonghwa studies his expression before sighing, “no, you’re not. I know it’s a lot to ask, Joongie, but… You’re my first choice. And you don’t even have to say yes.”

Hongjoong snorts at that. When has he ever said no to Park Seonghwa? Instead, he inquires, “who else are you considering?”

Seonghwa hums nervously, “two others. One is Yunho.”

The ugly, green monster of jealousy prods at Hongjoong’s insides. He’s always been envious and (very) slightly disdainful towards Seonghwa’s previous partners, but it would be another level if Seonghwa were to date within their friend group.

But Hongjoong somewhat understands. Yunho is kind and loving. He’s also tall, handsome, and blessed with exceptional hand-eye coordination, which are all great genes to have when you’re making a baby.

Hongjoong puts an end to that thought train, “and?”

“Um,” Seonghwa’s cheeks pink a little and he occupies his hands by flipping his fork over and over again. “Ian.”

“That Australian fuck?”

“Joongie!”

Hongjoong expression hardens, “we are not contacting him, remember? He abandoned you—”

Seonghwa counters, “he got a job offer back in Australia—”

“He didn’t have the decency to even try—”

“We agreed long distance was hard—”

“He didn’t get in touch when he came back to Korea—”

“I changed my number and email—”

“He didn’t pick you up after your wisdom teeth removal—”

“Oh my God, Joongie, that was over eight years ago and you know he got into a minor collision on the way to me.”

Hongjoong and Seonghwa stare at each other, unblinking.

Hongjoong finally huffs and crosses his arms over his chest, “well then, he’s a bad driver. Do you want your baby to be a bad driver? That’s totally genetic.”

Seonghwa shakes his head but there’s a little smile tugging at the corner of his lips, “Hongjoong-ah.”

“I’m your first choice?” Hongjoong moves on as he’d rather not talk about Christian-“Ian”-fucking-Yu anymore.

Seonghwa hums, “of course you are.”

“But I’m short,” Hongjoong blurts. “I’m gonna stunt your baby’s height potential.”

“Joongie, you’re 5’8, that’s not short at all. The baby’s height will be fine.”

“I have a bad memory. The baby’s gonna forget your birthday.”

Seonghwa gives Hongjoong an are-you-serious look over his coffee mug. “Says the man who just brought up an incident from eight years ago? And you’ve never forgotten my birthday, so why would our baby?”

At the mention of ‘our baby’, Hongjoong starts to feel himself falling and drowning all over again.

“How would this even work?” The alpha questions.

Seonghwa teases him, “well, Joongie. When an alpha and an omega get intimate together, the alpha’s ejaculation fertilizes the omega’s egg and then a baby starts to grow inside—”

Hongjoong slaps his hand on the table, ears burning, “Hwa!” The blonde swallows around the lump forming in his throat. “Do you… Do you want me to—” 

They’ve never offered this before, not in their eighteen years of friendship. It’s a loaded question, and there’s a reason it hasn’t been asked, as the act will change their friendship forever. Hongjoong rushes the rest out despite his discomfort, “do you want me to be with you for your next heat?”

The tables flip and now Seonghwa is the one flushing in embarrassment. “O-Oh. Um,” the omega bites his lip. He looks like he wants to say something but closes his mouth and pauses. Then he finally says, “that’s not necessary. I’ve already looked into clinics that can assist. You’d just have to come with me and…”

Hongjoong knows what he means, but says the rest of the sentence anyway. “Jerk it into a cup?”

The poor waiter picks that exact moment to arrive with their breakfast and he gives Hongjoong’s hollandaise sauce-on-the-side a look of mild disgust before politely asking, “can I get you two anything else?”

“No, thank you,” Seonghwa responds and the waiter looks more than happy to abide after sliding a stack of napkins to Hongjoong and telling them to enjoy themselves. 

Seonghwa picks up his fork and knife and pushes his plate across the table so it touches Hongjoong’s. He then transfers his toast and jam to Hongjoong’s plate and trades it for the alpha’s side salad onto his plate.

Hongjoong watches his best friend cut one of his pancakes and sausages in half to give to Hongjoong while also stealing a half of one of the blonde’s eggs benedicts.

Seonghwa knows him so well. So caring, beautiful, attentive, beautiful, considerate, and beautiful. 

The omega finishes exchanging the food on their plates and before he can take his first bite, Hongjoong says, “okay, I’ll do it.”

Seonghwa’s eyes widen and then he’s beaming at Hongjoong. The raven haired man drops his utensils and reaches across the table to hold one of Hongjoong’s hands in his, “Joongie! That’s amazing, thank you!”

Hongjoong stares at where Seonghwa is cradling his hand; the omega’s skin is soft and slightly cool to the touch.

“You don’t have to be involved at all,” Seonghwa explains and retracts his hands from Hongjoong to pick up his fork again. He happily stabs some of his scrambled eggs, “of course you’ll be a part of the baby’s life as my best friend, but you don’t have to assume the role of its or my alpha.”

My alpha.

When Seongwha says those words, this time Hongjoong’s hand does knock over his glass of water and it shatters on the floor as the liquid spreads across the tiles. 

He gives Seonghwa a sheepish look when they both hear their waiter sigh loudly in the corner of the diner.

♡

Hongjoong accompanies Seonghwa to the fertilization clinic that same weekend so he doesn’t have time to think about and backtrack on his decision, and also because Seonghwa is… Well, fertile and close to his heat.

Seonghwa smells amazing and his scent of coffee and floral notes are strong the second he gets into Hongjoong’s car. The alpha tries to remain calm, but he’s always thought Seonghwa’s scent was the most marvelous thing to bless his nose.

It’s incredibly awkward to sit through Dr. Kang Yeosang’s instructions on the process of masturbating into the clinical container. The beta doctor is informative and professional, and Hongjoong feels awful that he can only half-concentrate with Seonghwa sitting next to him.

Seonghwa nudges him when Hongjoong refers to it as a ‘cup’ the moment Yeosang gives it to him.

“You may make your way to the service rooms, Mr. Kim.”

He means: masturbation room.

“Once finished, please come back here so I can inseminate Mr. Park.”

He means: impregnate him.

Seonghwa follows him up until they stand in front of a door that reads ‘Service Room 6’ and the omega stares intently at Hongjoong when the blonde places a hand on the doorknob. Hongjoong cannot imagine five other alphas or betas using the rooms around him to do the exact same thing.

It’s a bit of a mood killer and Hongjoong grips the cup in his hand tighter.

“Are you going to be alright?” The taller man asks. His deep, lilting voice helps the mood a little.

“Are you coming in here with me?” Hongjoong jokes and Seonghwa flushes red which only reminds the alpha that his friend is fertile and ovulating. Which helps the mood a lot.

“Will it help you?” Seonghwa inquires as if reading the alpha’s mind and Hongjoong gapes at him.

Of course it would help Hongjoong. The alpha figures it would help them both if Hongjoong were to impregnate the omega himself, thrusting relentlessly into tight heat—

Alright. The mood is back up. Hongjoong tries not to stare at his friend’s chest or the blush spread across Seonghwa’s perfect cheekbones. And then he’s hit with a wave of Seonghwa’s coffee and floral scent.

He holds up the cylindrical container in his hand and twists the doorknob. “I’m just gonna— I’ll be quick.”

“Okay,” Seonghwa steps forward after Hongjoong enters the room and then catches himself as if he was about to go in too.

“Wow, you’re really adamant on watching me jerk it, huh?” Hongjoong further teases.

Seonghwa shakes his head, still flushed in embarrassment, and turns on his heel. “I’ll be in the waiting room.”

It’s uneventful and Hongjoong feels a tug of shame afterwards. 

The alpha does his thing with a head full of Seonghwa’s honeyed skin glistening with sweat, rosy lips from biting them to suppress moans, hooded eyes of lust and desire, and his rich, coffee and floral scent. Hongjoong wipes himself down, tucks himself back into his pants, and awkwardly marches back to the lobby with the still-warm container of his sperm.

“I have your jerky cup full of my little minions,” Hongjoong says to Seonghwa, who stands from his chair the moment the alpha enters the waiting room.

Seonghwa snorts out a giggle but the few other people sitting in the waiting room give him dirty looks and the receptionist frowns in disgust.

“We’re all doing the same thing here,” the blonde says to the entire lobby judging him and Seonghwa grabs his arm to direct him towards the same room they were in previously when speaking to the doctor.

“Joongie,” Seonghwa stifles the rest of his laughter into his fist, “maybe not the best setting for humour.”

The blonde shrugs and the beta doctor is standing by the door, ready with his nitrile and latex gloves on and a hand held out to accept Hongjoong’s sperm.

“Here’s my—”

“Jerky cup of minions?” Yeosang finishes for Hongjoong monotonously though there’s a hint of a smile tugging on the corners of his lips. “I heard you from the lobby.”

“Er, sorry…”

“No need to apologize, Mr. Kim, I find it endearing that you’re making dad jokes already.” The doctor gives Hongjoong a friendly nod and gestures for Seonghwa to follow him. “Right this way, Mr. Park. This will all be over in twenty minutes.”

Hongjoong is now the one to sit in the waiting room and he occupies himself with his phone to search up what to expect during pregnancy. There’s an older woman glaring at him from across the room and the alpha assumes it must be from his word choice earlier. But it doesn’t bother him.

When Seonghwa shuffles back out into the waiting room after thirty minutes, Hongjoong can’t tell what the omega is feeling. His brain unhelpfully screams that the raven haired man just received Hongjoong’s sperm and there could be a baby starting to grow as the seconds tick by.

They sign more paperwork with the receptionist and Seonghwa schedules his check up appointment in the next three months.

“Do you feel any… Different?” Hongjoong asks when they exit the clinic.

“Yeah, I feel your jerk juice sloshing around in here,” Seonghwa pats his belly and Hongjoong chokes on his spit. “I’m just kidding. They recommended that I take a test after two weeks. So I guess we’ll have to wait until then.”

“I guess so,” Hongjoong’s eyes trail back up to Seonghwa’s face from where he’s staring at the omega’s stomach.

The taller man stares back at him and gives his friend a soft smile. “Thank you, Joongie. This… This means a lot to me. And I’m really—” Seonghwa inhales sharply and Hongjoong desperately wants to kiss him with the way the omega looks at him with those sparkling eyes. Seonghwa reaches out to grab Hongjoong’s hand. “I’m so happy that it’s— I’m so happy to have you.”

Hongjoong feels his heart hammer against his ribcage rapidly, on the verge of beating out of his chest. He gives his friend a lopsided and conflicted smile. “Hwa, I—”

I want something more.

I would marry you and take on the role of father to our children.

I love you.

The alpha squeezes Seonghwa’s hand before letting it go. “I’m happy, too. For you.”

The two friends have had their fair share of awkward moments together, but most of them occurred while they were teenagers going through puberty and navigating young adulthood. This is the first time it’s been this awkward; more than the incident in senior year of high school and second year of college when they tried kissing each other (yes, those were two separate moments).

They don’t talk about those incidents.

“Let’s get lunch?” Seonghwa suggests and breaks the silence. “There’s a salad bar nearby and I read that leafy greens promote a healthy pregnancy.”

Hongjoong makes a face, “no bars should have the words ‘salad’ in it. Ridiculous.”

“You better not pass this aversion to vegetables to our baby,” Seonghwa playfully scolds. “Vegetables are good for you.”

“That’s a thing adults say,” Hongjoong grumbles.

“We are adults,” Seonghwa points out.

“Exactly.”

“Hongjoong-ah, that doesn’t make sense…”

“What about abura soba?” Hongjoong proposes and Seonghwa lights up.

“Yes! I love soba!” The omega claps his hands together in glee, the vegetable talk immediately forgotten. “I’ll be so sad if our baby doesn’t love soba…”

“They’re not here yet, no need to be disappointed,” Hongjoong chuckles and places a hand on Seonghwa’s lower back to guide him towards the alpha’s parked car.

♡

Hongjoong gets the phone call in the middle of the day on a Wednesday.

He’s in a meeting with his fellow producers, betas Kim Kyungmun and Oh Jonghoon, about the upcoming album for their agency’s group, xikers, when his phone rings violently on the table. 

The alpha silences it but it immediately lights up again with Seonghwa’s name flashing across the screen.

“Is that important?” Kyungmun asks as he and Jonghoon stare at the alpha’s vibrating phone.

Jonghoon chuckles nervously when he gets another look at the name, “isn’t that your wife? You should answer it.”

Hongjoong’s ears heat up at the mention of his ‘wife’; Seonghwa has stopped by KQ Entertainment multiple times to drop off lunch and baked goods for Hongjoong. The omega would explain that he was in the area, that he knew Hongjoong hadn’t eaten yet, that he cooked extra meal prep boxes, or that he was trying out a new recipe and wanted Hongjoong to let him know his thoughts.

The alpha’s entire company knows Seonghwa as his ‘wife’, even security on the ground floor, despite Hongjoong’s attempts to correct them that the dark haired man is just his friend.

“He’s not my wife. I mean, husband… We’re not married,” Hongjoong says weakly and Kyungmun and Jonghoon give him deadpan looks as his phone continues to ring. “Ugh. Excuse me,” Hongjoong sighs and swipes his phone off the table to exit the studio for privacy. “Hello?”

“Hongjoong-ah!” Seonghwa wails on the other end and the alpha perks up in concern.

“Seonghwa? Are you okay? What’s wrong? Do you need me to pick you up? Where are you?”

“I’m—” The speaker is muffled for a moment, followed by sounds of shuffling.

When the omega still doesn’t answer, the blonde says sternly, “send me your location, I’ll leave the company now—”

“No!” Seonghwa sobs distantly. There’s more rustling and then his friend is shouting into the receiver, “I’m pregnant!”

Hongjoong nearly drops his phone.

“Hongjoong-ah, we did it! Oh my God, I’m over the moon right now—”

As Seonghwa’s voice filters through the speaker, many emotions fight to settle in Hongjoong’s brain.

Should he be elated? Of course he is.

But it only further cements the fact that from now on, Seonghwa will be carrying his baby.

He’s the father.

But is he?

Biologically, yes.

“You don’t have to assume the role of its or my alpha,” Seonghwa had said.

Once the baby is born, does he have to pretend to be its uncle?

Oh God, why didn’t he think of all of this before he agreed?!

Because he’d do anything for Seonghwa.

Seonghwa, his best friend. His best friend, who he’s been in love with for years. His best friend, who is now pregnant with his child.

He’s spiralling.

Spiralling!

“Joongie?” Seonghwa’s voice, now softer, questions from the phone dangling from Hongjoong’s hand.

The alpha snaps out of his daze and presses the device back to his ear. “T-That’s amazing news, Hwa! I— Can I come over later?”

“Yes,” Seonghwa replies instantly. “I’ll cook you dinner. When do you get off work?”

“I can be at yours around seven.”

“Okay. I’ll have dinner ready by then.”

“Sounds good.” After they say their goodbyes, Hongjoong shoves his phone in his pocket and stares at the wall blankly.

That call felt oddly… Domestic.

Hongjoong allows himself two more minutes of weird, emotional turmoil before he slaps his cheeks and re-enters the studio.

“Good news? Bad news?” Kyungmun guesses as he and Jonghoon study Hongjoong’s expression.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Jonghoon says.

“I’m… Uh, Seonghwa’s pregnant,” Hongjoong utters out robotically, unable to think of an excuse to disguise how he’s feeling.

Kyungmun and Jonghoon jump up from their seats and congratulate Hongjoong profusely.

“Holy shit, Joong-ah! That’s awesome!”

“You didn’t tell us you and Seonghwa were trying?”

“I can’t believe you’re gonna be a father!”

Hongjoong doesn’t correct them on the situation as he’s already regretting telling them but is appreciative of the support. “Let’s get back to work, I need to leave by six.”

“Is Seonghwa expecting you?” Kyungmun asks as he picks up his pen again.

“At seven,” Hongjoong responds and flips through their notes to try to get back on track.

“Oh, to have a beautiful wife waiting at home,” Jonghoon sighs wistfully and Kyungmun snickers.

“If we’re done by five, you should buy flowers on the way home,” Kyungmun recommends.

Jonghoon snaps his fingers. “Flowers! That’s it! What if we rearranged the lyrics to something like…”

The three men revert back into producer mode and Hongjoong does stop by the local florist on his way to Seonghwa’s later that evening.

month two.

Seonghwa isn’t showing yet and doesn’t look any different apart from pregnancy glow: his cheeks are always rosy, his skin is always dewy, and there’s a permanent smile on the omega’s face.

They’re at their usual breakfast place in their usual booth at ass-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and Seonghwa is tapping away at his phone after they give their order to the waiter, Wooyoung.

“I told my parents and Yonghyun hyung,” Seonghwa says and puts his phone away. “I wasn’t sure if you wanted to tell your parents and Bumjoong.”

“Eventually,” Hongjoong shrugs and flips the butter knife in his hands. “Did you want to tell our friends?”

“I’m gonna have to,” Seonghwa chuckles. “There’s gonna be a point where I can’t hide my belly.”

Hongjoong hums in agreement and takes a sip of his coffee.

“We can tell them after the first trimester,” Seonghwa thinks out loud. “And have a little celebration. I don’t really want a baby shower or anything, but we can do it after my appointment! We’ll also find out the gender.”

Seonghwa takes out his phone again and fiddles with it before flipping it around to show Hongjoong.

The alpha squints at the different pictures littered across Seonghwa’s phone screen of cribs, baby clothes, and random paint colours.

“What’s this?”

“I’m going to start converting my den into a nursery,” Seonghwa explains and zooms into one of the paint colours, “what do you think of this colour?”

The colour is an azure blue. It’s beautiful and reminds Hongjoong of Seonghwa’s twinkling eyes, like blinking at stars in the evening sky.

“It’s nice. Isn’t your den kind of… Small?”

Seonghwa has been living in a one-and-a-half bedroom apartment for the last decade. It’s in the heart of downtown to allow for the omega to walk to work and is easily accessible to the subway for out-of-town travel. It’s worked for him as a single household but Hongjoong can’t help but worry about his best friend being too cramped with welcoming a newborn.

“It’s fine for now, I’ll probably look into new places when our sweet potato is two years old.”

Hongjoong’s mind drifts to his own condominium: as a producer of KQ Entertainment for the last decade, the alpha has and does make good money. He currently resides in an upscale loft with a spacious living room and kitchen, three bedrooms, and two baths.

The smallest bedroom could easily hold a crib, a changing station, and Hongjoong could install an additional closet unit for organizational purposes since he knows Seonghwa would probably like to keep the baby’s space clean…

He opens his mouth to suggest this, but then it snaps shut when he realizes the implication of it. If he were to offer his guest bedrooms to Seonghwa and the baby, it would be asking his best friend to move in with him. 

Like a family.

“Is this crib made of gold? Why is it four thousand dollars?” Seonghwa giggles in disbelief and shows Hongjoong his phone again. “I haven’t decided on this yet… Is it too soon? Let me paint the room first. I’ll do it next weekend!”

“Am I invited?” Hongjoong asks in what he hopes has a hint of nonchalance.

Seonghwa stares at Hongjoong, slack jawed.

The waiter interrupts for a moment to place their breakfast orders down and Seonghwa smiles at him thankfully. Then the omega pushes their plates together to transfer his toast and jam to Hongjoong’s plate and trades it for the alpha’s side salad.

When Seonghwa pushes Hongjoong’s plate back and pulls his plate in, he mumbles around a mouthful of eggs cutely, “you want to help me paint?”

“Yeah, painting takes a long time. If both of us do it, you’ll get it done faster.” Hongjoong taps the azure blue paint colour still displayed on Seonghwa’s phone. “This is the perfect colour.”

Seonghwa smiles warmly at him, “I think so too.”

♡

Hongjoong juggles three bags of groceries and takeout and a tub of ice cream while trying to accept the call on his ringing phone. He manages to get it just in time and wedges the phone in between his ear and shoulder. “Hello?”

“Joongie! Did you get pickles by any chance?”

“Um,” Hongjoong pauses and the three grocery bags filled with the list of items Seonghwa requested weigh him down. He and Seonghwa both know he doesn’t have pickles because it was not on Seonghwa’s list. “I have dill chips…”

“That’s not the same—”

“Seonghwa-yah, I am literally parked.”

“Okay fine, I’ll buzz you up.”

Hongjoong waddles into the elevator and nods politely to Song Mingi, Seonghwa’s next door alpha neighbour who Hongjoong has made small talk with when leaving the omega’s apartment.

“Date night?” Mingi asks and tilts his head towards the bags and ice cream.

Hongjoong laughs stiffly, “er, no, paint night. We’re painting Seonghwa’s den.”

“Oh,” Mingi gives Hongjoong a once-over and the blonde alpha flushes at the blatant attention. “You’re dressed up kinda fancy for painting walls.”

The ding of the elevator saves Hongjoong as the doors slide open and the two alphas exit. Hongjoong gives Mingi a courteous nod and before he can knock on Seonghwa’s door, it swings inwards and the omega takes the tub of ice cream out of Hongjoong’s hands.

“Come in! I already set up the movie,” Seonghwa ushers his best friend inside his apartment and closes the door to lock it. “And I plugged in the heat pad for you even though my apartment is literally a boiler room.”

The omega is wearing a plain, baby blue tee with loose, shrunken gym shorts that cut off mid thigh. Hongjoong sits on the heat pad waiting for him on the floor and sets up the takeout food on Seonghwa’s low living room table.

Seonghwa plops down beside Hongjoong and affectionately bumps his shoulder before he presses play on the remote for the movie on his TV.

It’s some romantic comedy that the two friends make fun of but are totally invested in. They make jabs at the two lead characters and scream for them to confess already.

Right at the middle mark of the movie, Seonghwa pauses it, cleans up the garbage, and refrigerates the takeout.

“Let’s paint first and then we can finish the movie,” the omega says. “If it’s late… You can sleep over.”

Hongjoong gulps. Seonghwa only has one bed. While he’s slept over a handful of times, it’s not an often occurrence. “Uh, maybe. We’ll see how long painting takes but I need to know if those two figure their shit out and get together in the end.”

Seonghwa blinks at Hongjoong and laughs, “oh, you mean the movie?”

“Of course the movie.”

“Alright Hongjoong-ah, let’s paint.”

Soft music emits from Seonghwa’s bluetooth speaker in the corner of the den and there’s a scented candle burning ‘pine and fresh laundry’. 

Seonghwa has already taped off most of the crowning and baseboards. He’s set up the paint rollers, pans, and there’s a tarp spread neatly over the floor. “Do you want to use the roller or the brush for the edges?”

“I’m not picky.”

“You use the roller in the middle and I’ll start detailing the top, and when you can’t reach…”

Hongjoong scowls at his best friend, “I’m not that short…”

“Mhm, that’s what I keep telling you,” Seonghwa teases and hands Hongjoong the roller while he clutches the brush.

The two friends clink their painting tools together as a ‘cheers’ before dipping it into the paint pan to start.

It’s a lot of fun: they sing along to the songs playing from Seonghwa’s playlist and pretend to put on concerts for each other, using their painting tools as microphones. They fling paint at each other as every inch of Seonghwa’s floor is protected and they take many, many, many snack breaks.

“I really wish I had some pickles,” Seonghwa says forlornly around a mouthful of chips.

“Dill is—”

“Not a pickle,” the omega says as the alpha says, “a pickle.”

The two stare at each other and Hongjoong gestures to a small portion of the wall they’ve painted in the last two hours when they weren’t joking around and eating.

“If we don’t concentrate we’ll be up all night.”

“It’s a weekend, we can sleep in tomorrow.”

Hongjoong turns away from his friend to dip his roller into the paint pan. He frowns at it. This is so domestic. “Get to work, Park, and maybe we can finish at a decent hour.”

They end up finishing around two in the morning and are slumped on the floor, exhausted. 

“Stay over,” Seonghwa insists.

“I don’t have a clean change of clothes,” Hongjoong states. “And I know how you hate dirty clothes on your bed.”

“I’m washing my sheets tomorrow,” Seonghwa assures. “Not showering for one night won’t kill me.”

“Ah,” and what can Hongjoong do but say, “okay.”

“Okay,” Seonghwa affirms, stands, and holds out his hands to help Hongjoong up.

The alpha clasps Seonghwa’s hands in his and then the omega tugs on their connected hands to lead Hongjoong into his room.

They brush their teeth, fall into Seonghwa’s queen bed, and the omega pulls the duvet over them. There’s six inches of space in between them but their bent knees knock together as they face each other.

“Thanks for your help, Joongie,” Seonghwa murmurs sleepily, eyes already closed.

The moonlight streaming in through the omega’s window highlights his delicate yet sharp features celestially.

“Anything—” Hongjoong swallows the ‘for you’ and transitions smoothly, “for a friend.”

Seonghwa giggles and Hongjoong yearns to kiss that giggle.

The omega whispers a gentle, “goodnight, Joong-ah.” After no more than thirty seconds, Hongjoong hears soft snores from the raven haired man.

Hongjoong blinks into the darkness and contently watches Seonghwa’s chest rise and fall with every breath. His eyes trace the omega’s forehead to his eyebrows, down the straight slope of his nose to his full, parted lips. 

The alpha bites his inner cheeks.

“Hwa?”

Nothing.

A little louder, “Seonghwa-yah?”

Light snores.

Hongjoong chuckles fondly before reaching out to brush some of Seonghwa’s bangs out of his face and leans in to place a faint kiss to the omega’s forehead, his lips barely brushing Seonghwa’s hairline.

“Goodnight, Hwa-yah.” And when Hongjoong closes his eyes, he dreams of kissing Seonghwa and their baby’s giggles.

month three.

At the end of Seonghwa’s first trimester, he’s now sporting a visible bump.

A week prior, Hongjoong brought Seonghwa to his check up appointment and the two were informed that the baby was growing spectacularly and got the verdict of its gender: a boy. Dr. Kang Yeosang gave Seonghwa a spiel of what foods to avoid, exercises he should refrain from, and made sure he calls the clinic if he experiences any discomfort or issues.

After receiving the news that they’re expecting a boy, Seonghwa begins referring to the baby permanently as ‘sweet potato’.

They’re at their usual breakfast place at dumb-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and Seonghwa has changed his usual order to a heaping pile of belgian waffles, fruit, and whipped cream.

“I’m gonna invite our friends out to all-you-can-eat barbecue at Meat Legend,” Seonghwa says and drowns his waffles in syrup. The weight of the liquid flattens all of his whipped cream. “And then we can tell them about our sweet potato.”

“Sure,” Hongjoong agrees easily and takes the forkful of waffles that Seonghwa offers to him. “When’s your next appointment?”

“In three months. I’m probably going to be twice the size by that time.”

“Have you bought new clothes yet?”

Seonghwa shakes his head, “no… I already have some loose fitting clothing, so I was putting shopping off to see if I really need to purchase anything.”

Hongjoong takes a sip of his coffee. He notices Seonghwa looking at him longingly and chuckles, “sorry, you can’t have my java juice.”

The omega pouts, “if you really cared about me, you wouldn’t tempt me.”

The blonde gives his friend a look of ‘you wanna bet?’ and raises his hand into the air to beckon the waiter over.

“Joongie, I was just kidding—”

“Yes, sir?”

“I’m finished with my coffee, thanks,” Hongjoong hands Wooyoung his half full mug and he, although confused, takes it away from the alpha and walks away. “Anyways. I can alter your clothes. You know I do my fair share of DIY.”

“That’s too much trouble.”

“It’s really not.”

Seonghwa and Hongjoong stare challengingly at each other. The omega breaks first and shoves a bite of waffles into his mouth, “there are a few pants I wouldn’t mind expanding the waistline.”

“Bring them over.”

“Aren’t you busy with your group’s new album?”

“I can do it when I get home, Hwa-yah, it’s not a big deal.”

“At least show me so I can do some.”

“Alright, how about after the barbecue?”

“Okay!”

♡

On the day of their barbecue, Hongjoong picks Seonghwa up so the omega can put his bag of clothes to be altered in the alpha’s trunk. They arrive at the restaurant first where Seonghwa tries to calm himself down as the waiter brings a round of water to their table.

“What if they don’t approve?”

Hongjoong scoffs, “so? What do I care what Soyeon or Minho think?”

Seonghwa looks down at his casual outfit of fitted joggers and a loose, cable knit sweater. It hides his bump well but if pulled taut you would see the protrusion.

“Should I just announce it? Should we do it together?”

Seonghwa and Hongjoong are seated beside each other at their reserved, rectangular table. The omega is turned to him with his knees on one side of the chair and Hongjoong places a reassuring hand on the raven haired man’s thigh. “I think you should do it. It’s uh… It’s your baby.”

Seonghwa’s hands blanket Hongjoong’s and the omega’s slender fingers curl into the alpha’s palm. His doe eyes are round with uncertainty as he looks at Hongjoong, “are you sure?”

Hongjoong nods slowly.

For the past three months, Hongjoong has been going crazy. He’s in love with Seonghwa, sure, but he’s always been able to separate those feelings from their friendship. He may go out of his way for the omega sometimes yet he’s been very careful not to cross any lines.

But everything has been blurry lately. They’ve been texting more often as Seonghwa will ask for Hongjoong’s opinion on baby related items and Hongjoong will ask Seonghwa if he needs a ride to appointments and miscellaneous shopping.

It feels more like things couples would do, what parents would do, rather than a friend assisting their pregnant friend.

It’s deluding Hongjoong’s lovesick brain into creating this picture perfect scenario where he and Seonghwa are married and welcoming their baby boy into their shared home—

“What’s up!” Minho whoops as he approaches their table, followed by Juyeon and Yunho. “Hi guys!” The three men each give Seonghwa and Hongjoong side hugs before picking their seats.

When Yunho’s arms encircle around Seonghwa, the alpha immediately pulls back to study the omega.

“Hyung,” the word is drawn out of Yunho’s mouth as he narrows his eyes at Seonghwa. His hold around the omega tightens and then he leans into Seonghwa’s neck to sniff the junction where it meets his shoulder. “You’re different… Your scent, you’re…”

“Oh, yes,” Seonghwa gives the younger man a pat on the shoulder but Yunho doesn’t release him from his hold. “I’ll tell you when Soyeon and Soojin—”

As if on cue, Soyeon shuffles up to their table and by the time she greets everyone, Soojin follows suit. “Hey guys!”

“Hey, hey, hey. Sit down, now.” Yunho waves to the rest of their friends and then urges everyone to be quiet. The alpha turns to Seonghwa, still in his arms and the only one standing with him, and stares intently at the older man, “yay everyone is here, now hyung. Why are you different?”

“Seonghwa is different?” Minho pipes up and Yunho shushes the other omega.

Seonghwa looks at Yunho’s curious eyes, then to his expecting friends, and then to Hongjoong, who’s playing around on the iPad used for ordering and sipping his tea. “Well… I have some news!”

Soyeon is about to ask, “what is it—”

Yunho shushes her too.

Seonghwa takes a deep breath and then shifts in Yunho’s hold to maneuver the alpha’s hands to the front of his abdomen. Yunho’s eyes widen comically as Seonghwa announces, “I’m pregnant! Three months now. It’s a boy! Surprise!”

All five jaws drop.

In their silence, Seonghwa rubs his belly to show them his bump and jokes, “no one cuss in front of our sweet potato.”

It’s silent again and Hongjoong nearly spills his tea all over himself when Soyeon slaps his arm.

The alpha woman glares at the blonde, “how could you do this?!”

“What?” Hongjoong exclaims and sets his hot cup of tea back on the table to prevent any accidents as their friends shift their focus to him. “Why are you looking at me?”

“Is this an accident?” Soyeon further pries. “Or planned?”

“Is this good or bad news?” Soojin says cautiously as the beta glances between the seated Hongjoong and the standing Seonghwa. “Should we be happy or angry?”

“Angry? Why would you be angry?” Seonghwa blinks in confusion and Yunho’s hold on him tenses.

“Hongjoong hyung isn’t baby trapping you, is he?” Yunho asks in concern and both Seonghwa and Hongjoong choke on their spit.

“What the fuck?” Hongjoong blurts and Juyeon knocks his knuckles against the table in front of the blonde alpha.

“Hey! Seonghwa said no cuss words!” Juyeon frowns seriously. “Don’t swear.”

Minho looks at Hongjoong disdainfully, “the sweet potato is betrayed by his own father.”

“Shape up, Joong-ah!” Soojin adds and lightly punches Hongjoong’s shoulder. “You need to set a good example for your son.”

The blonde alpha is flabbergasted. “Why is everyone assuming that I’m the father?”

Everyone stares at Hongjoong impassively.

Hongjoong sighs, “okay, I am the father…”

“We knew that already, you’re wasting our time!” Soyeon gasps and turns her attention to Seonghwa, who Yunho has ushered to take a seat. “What Soojin said: Is this good or bad news?”

“Good news,” Seonghwa says cheerfully as Hongjoong grumbles, “obviously good news…”

“Congratulations! We didn’t know you were trying,” Juyeon says conversationally as Minho works on ordering the first round for the table. “I know you’ve always wanted to be a father, but I didn’t think it would happen so soon!”

“We went to a fertility clinic to do artificial insemination,” Seonghwa explains. “And since I’m not in a relationship, I asked Hongjoong if he would be my donor.”

Another wave of shock.

Minho pauses tapping away on the iPad to interject, “wait… You guys…” The omega waves his finger in between Hongjoong and Seonghwa. “You guys aren’t…” He doesn’t finish the sentence.

“And Hongjoong is the father,” Juyeon states.

“Yes,” Seonghwa answers and then chuckles nervously. “Why, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing…” The five friends trail off. 

“Minho-yah, get the fried scallops!” Soyeon changes the subject and Seonghwa and Hongjoong let their friends take the lead with ordering.

The rest of dinner is pleasant; they catch up with each other and eat a lot of food. When it’s time to settle the bill everyone agrees to cover both Hongjoong and Seonghwa’s portion after their ‘good news’, to the two mens’ refusal.

They hug each other goodbye outside of the restaurant with the promise of meeting again soon before the baby is born.

When Seonghwa settles in the passenger seat of Hongjoong’s car, the omega reclines it slightly and closes his eyes.

“Are you tired? I can drop you home if you want.”

“It’s a weekend, Hongjoong-ah,” Seonghwa smiles, eyes still closed. “I want you to show me how to adjust my pants.”

Hongjoong stares at where Seonghwa’s full belly is straining against his knit sweater before he turns the key in the ignition to start the car. He doesn’t put the car into drive yet and unbuckles his seatbelt to reach across the omega to grab his belt.

The moment his hand encloses around the belt, Seonghwa’s eyes flutter open and he watches as Hongjoong pulls the belt across his body to secure it into the buckle.

“I could’ve done that,” Seonghwa murmurs and tugs on the belt so it fits more comfortably over his stomach.

Hongjoong re-buckles his own belt and presses down on the brakes to shift the car into drive. “Just relax.”

He feels his friend staring at the side of his head but he keeps his eyes forward on the road as he pulls out of the parking lot.

The drive to Hongjoong’s condominium only takes twenty minutes and the alpha jiggles Seonghwa’s thigh to wake him from dozing off in the passenger seat. Hongjoong is quick to take out Seonghwa’s bag of clothes from his trunk and locks the car after the raven haired man closes the door.

Once they head up to Hongjoong’s unit and enter, Seonghwa sighs heavily. He begins picking up discarded clothing on the floor and lifts it to his nose to sniff.

He’s holding a graphic band tee Hongjoong wore some time ago and he flaps it at the alpha, “Hongjoong-ah, when was the last time you washed this? How long has this been on your floor?”

“Three—”

“Three days? Are you crazy!””

“— months,” Hongjoong hauls Seonghwa’s bag of clothing onto his couch and heads over to his cabinet to retrieve his sewing kit. “At least I didn’t say years.”

“That’s not a flex. Unacceptable,” Seonghwa starts to dart around the loft. He gathers all of the discarded clothing into his arm as Hongjoong sets up the sewing machine on his living room table. The omega disappears into the master bedroom and then emerges, frantic. “Where’s your laundry basket?”

“It broke,” Hongjoong responds and starts to take out the clothing from Seonghwa’s bag to assess what he’s going to alter first.

“Okay, so where’s your backup laundry basket?”

“I don’t have one.”

Seonghwa lets out a noise of indignation. “What about your backup backup laundry basket?” 

“You can leave it on the floor, Hwa.”

“The floor! Do you at least have a garbage bag I can use?”

“Oh, I don’t buy garbage bags,” Hongjoong picks up a pair of jeans, mirroring Seonghwa who’s across the room holding a pair of the blonde’s jean shorts. “I use the bags that they put my takeout in. Dual functionality. Less waste.”

Seonghwa looks like he doesn’t know whether to scream or agree. “Where’s your mop?”

“Seonghwa-yah,” Hongjoong groans. “You’re not cleaning my house.”

“Please! It’s so dusty in here and I’m gonna go crazy—”

“No, modifying your clothes is more important than my dusty floors—”

“There’s a smell, Joong-ah, and that looks like a wine spill—”

“I think that’s ketchup. It’s not a big deal—”

“Ugh, I’m pregnant! And you can’t say no to me!” Seonghwa stomps his foot cutely and Hongjoong's mouth snaps shut. When the alpha doesn’t say anything, the raven haired man tilts his head adorably and says with saccharine innocence, “mop?”

Hongjoong rolls his eyes but points to the door near his kitchen. “You’re doing that on purpose. It’s in the closet.”

While Hongjoong adds an elasticized waistband to Seonghwa’s jeans, Seonghwa vacuums, mops, and cleans Hongjoong’s entire condo.

By the time Seonghwa’s finished wiping down the floor and windows of every room in the alpha’s house, Hongjoong has finished adding an extra waistband or button to everything Seonghwa brought over. The two reconvene in the middle of the rug on Hongjoong’s living room floor, both leaning against the luxury couch.

“At least hire someone to clean for you,” Seonghwa says as he gulps down the water Hongjoong set on the table.

“You didn’t even learn how to sew,” Hongjoong throws back at Seonghwa and gestures to the pile of altered clothing on his couch.

“Who told you to do it all? You should’ve left one to show me!”

“Who told you to clean my house? I do it every full moon anyways!”

“Full moon? What the hell, Hongjoong-ah.”

“Hey! Watch your language in front of the sweet potato,” Hongjoong tuts and reaches out to place his hands on either side of Seonghwa’s waist, as if covering the baby’s ears.

They stay like that, sitting beside each other with Hongjoong bent over to cradle the omega’s swollen belly. Hongjoong can feel the heat radiating off of Seonghwa’s body and he slowly looks up to meet the taller man’s eyes.

Seonghwa gazes down at him with his beautiful, doe eyes with a pink blush spread across his cheeks. Hongjoong figures it’s from exertion as the omega did just clean his entire home but he has no excuse for his own flushed face.

“Um,” Hongjoong straightens up and retracts his hands from Seonghwa’s abdomen. “Did you want to stay over? I have the guest room set up already.”

“That would be nice, thank you… Do you have a spare toothbrush? I have clothes,” the raven haired man grins and pats his pile of altered clothing.

“Yeah of course. You can use my or the guest bath.”

Both friends stand and begin their respective nighttime routines. After, they’re unable to look at each other and say their goodnights yet they both leave their doors open. 

month four.

Hongjoong bites his tongue when Wooyoung asks if they’d like to order any drinks. His sleep fogged brain is screaming for him to get his caffeine fix but one glimpse at the pregnant omega in front of him has him shutting that temptation down.

“Just water,” the alpha says as he hands Wooyoung his menu. “Thanks.”

“I wasn’t being serious about the coffee thing, you know,” Seonghwa says but his giddy smile contradicts his words.

They’re at their usual breakfast place at silly-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and Hongjoong requests the bill once their food arrives at the table.

“You have your demo party this morning, right?” Seonghwa asks and reaches for his wallet.

Hongjoong pulls his credit card out first and gives it to Wooyoung as Seonghwa accepts defeat and simply does their usual exchange of foods instead. “Yeah, for the title track. Nine o’clock. We still have a few months before the album deadline.”

“How’s it coming along?”

“I think it’s going well. I’m confident the boys will be able to embody the concept.”

“And when is the album being released?”

“February.”

Seonghwa rubs his belly, “I’m due in February.”

“Then I guess the sweet potato will be invited to our launch party.”

“Really?” Seonghwa laughs and waves Wooyoung over to ask for some takeout containers. “That’s if I can expel our baby out of my body in time.”

Hongjoong cringes, “please don’t say it like that.”

Seonghwa only laughs louder, “okay, if I give birth in time. Will it be at the company?”

“What? The launch party or the sweet potato’s birth? You can use Kyungmun’s studio.”

Seonghwa bites back his laughter this time, “Hongjoong-ah.”

Hongjoong gives him a cheeky smile, “we usually have launch parties in the artists’ lobby of the company.”

Seonghwa thanks the waiter when he brings out the to-go containers and hands one to Hongjoong after checking the time on his phone. “You should go. It’s almost quarter to nine.”

“Shit— shoot, already?” The alpha shoves the last of his (Seonghwa’s) toast into his mouth and washes it down with his water. He scrapes the rest of his eggs benedict into the container. “How are you getting to work?”

“Don’t worry about me,” Seonghwa holds open the bag for Hongjoong to place his takeout in. “I have time.”

“I can drop you—”

“Go, Hongjoong-ah, go!” The omega flaps a dismissive hand at the blonde.

“Okay, bye,” Hongjoong swipes his neatly wrapped takeout off the table and chugs the rest of his water. He stands and on his way to the exit, he pecks Seonghwa on the cheek before he rushes out of the restaurant.

It’s not until he’s in his car and merging onto the highway that he realizes that he just kissed Seonghwa goodbye.

What the fuck is happening to him?!

♡

“I’m very satisfied with this, gentlemen,” Kyuwook, the CEO of KQ Entertainment, gives the three producers a wide grin as he makes his way to the door of Kyungmun’s studio. “So we’re on track to release the music video in January? And the album in February?”

“Yes,” Kyungmun switches his screen from the music editing program to his calendar. “Promotions are set to take place two weeks after the album drop. Their first stage is on Valentine’s day.”

“We can likely release the B Side a week after the first stage,” Hongjoong says.

Kyungmun and Jonghoon give the blonde alpha puzzled looks before Jonghoon corrects, “the B Side will already be released… With the album. Did you mean the music video for the B Side?”

Hongjoong flushes in embarrassment, “er, yeah. Sorry. I meant the music video for the B Side will be released a week after the first stage…”

“Great,” Kyuwook pays no mind to Hongjoong’s slip up and opens the door. “Phenomenal work as always, Kyungmun-ah, Jonghoon-ah, Hongjoong-ah. Actually Hongjoong-ah…”

The alpha acknowledges the CEO.

“Are you getting enough sleep?” Kyuwook questions and points to the dark circles under Hongjoong’s eyes. “The past month… You’ve been like a shell of a person.”

“I haven’t had coffee in a while,” Hongjoong admits and takes off his glasses to scrub a hand over his face. “Do I look that bad?”

“No, just tired. Did you give up coffee for something? Health reasons?”

Hongjoong opens his mouth but Jonghoon is the one answering for him, “his wife is pregnant. Four months along now. He’s probably being sympathetic and abstaining from the same things.”

Kyuwook’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise, “you didn’t tell me you and Seonghwa were trying.”

“Guys,” Hongjoong pinches his nose bridge, “we’re not married.”

“Yet,” Kyungmun says matter-of-factly.

“I know a great jeweller, Hongjoong-ah,” Kyuwook scrolls through his phone and taps something on it before Hongjoong feels his own phone vibrate in his pocket. “I just sent you his store location. He does custom rings that are budget friendly. He could probably do your and Seonghwa’s rings if you wanted to tie the knot before the baby comes.”

“We’re—” just friends, Hongjoong wants to say. As Kyungmun, Jonghoon, and Kyuwook stare at him, the alpha sighs. He’s told them before but they never listen, and Hongjoong is too tired to argue. “Planning for the sweet potato is stressful enough.”

“You call your baby ‘sweet potato’?” Kyungmun coos.

Jonghoon snickers, “did you or Seonghwa-yah come up with that?”

“Only a sweet person could come up with such a sweet nickname,” Kyungmun chuckles.

“You’re right!”

“Hey!” Hongjoong barks at his colleagues. 

“I’m off, gentlemen,” Kyuwook says and gives Hongjoong a bright smile. “I’ll get you and Seonghwa-yah a card. Do you know the gender?”

Hongjoong shoves his glasses back onto his face as he replies sheepishly, “it’s a boy.”

“Wonderful! I can’t wait for you to bring him here to become a trainee when he’s eighteen,” Kyuwook winks teasingly at the blonde, “he’ll be my lethal weapon. With Seonghwa’s bone structure, height, loveable personality, outstanding dance footwork, natural vocal ability… And your musical talents? He’ll be unstoppable!”

“Don’t exploit my unborn baby—” Hongjoong splutters, “hey, why did you only list one good quality about me? I’m not bad looking—”

“Back to work, gents!” Kyuwook sings and shuts the door behind him. The three producers can hear the CEO whistling down the hall.

month five.

By this time, the baby has developed enough that Seonghwa feels its first kick and the omega’s eyes widen with delight.

They’re at their usual booth at ungodly-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and Hongjoong nearly spits out his water when Seonghwa lets out a high pitched and alarmed squeal.

“Are you okay?” Hongjoong coughs into his napkin.

Seonghwa stands up and waddles to sit in the empty space of the booth next to Hongjoong. He grabs the alpha’s hand and places it directly over his belly.

Hongjoong is about to comment that he doesn’t feel anything when it happens: A faint knock against his palm. He startles so much he nearly whacks Seonghwa in the face with his elbow if not for the omega holding his hands to his midriff.

A burst of warmth fills Hongjoong’s chest and hot tears prick the back of his eyeballs. Why is he feeling so emotional over a little kick?

Is it because that’s his son’s kick? No, it’s Seonghwa’s son’s kick.

“That’s… Awesome…” Hongjoong sniffles and hangs his head to look away from Seonghwa.

“Joong-ah, are you crying?” The omega goads jestfully.

In retaliation, Hongjoong bends down to stick his snotty nose into the raven haired man’s sweater where it creases between his chest and baby belly. 

“Hey! I’m not a tissue!”

Hongjoong ignores his friend and purposefully rubs his wet nose into the fabric but only lets out a sob when he feels another kick. The blonde ends up laying his cheek and ear directly on top of Seonghwa’s pregnant tummy and stays still, overcome with endearment with every little movement he detects.

“I think I hear the sweet potato’s heartbeat.”

“I think I’m just hungry,” Seonghwa jokes and runs a hand through Hongjoong’s blonde locks. “Your hair’s getting longer, Joongie.”

“I’m overdue for a haircut.”

“Have you thought about growing it out?”

“Nah, but I might dye it again soon.”

“What colour?”

Hongjoong rubs circles with his hand still on the lower part of Seonghwa’s swollen stomach, “I don’t know. Maybe blue again.”

“Blue…” Seonghwa ponders and his fingers curl around the tufts of hair at the base of Hongjoong’s neck. “I like you in blue.”

Hongjoong is reluctant to pull away but they are in public so the alpha sits up after wiping his eyes and nose on his sleeve. “Maybe I’ll dye it at home this weekend.”

“Let me help,” Seonghwa says and moves to go back to his own seat.

Hongjoong catches the omega’s sleeve before he can slide out of the booth. “Sit beside me.”

“That’s what couples do,” Seonghwa utters and the two men stare at where Hongjoong’s fingers are pinching the raven haired man’s sweater.

“We’re a couple of guys,” Hongjoong says lamely and then honestly, “I want to grope your belly.”

Seonghwa snorts, “well, what if I don’t want you to grope my belly?”

“It’s the least you can give me. I gave up coffee for you. Oh, and my minion crotch sauce, remember?”

Wooyoung chooses that moment to refill their waters and he throws Hongjoong a disgusted glare.

Hongjoong can only give the waiter his politest smile.

Seonghwa chuckles behind his hand when Wooyoung walks away and Hongjoong could really lean over and kiss the omega’s face if he wanted to.

If he was allowed to. He’s always wanted to…

“Okay, you can grope my belly,” Seonghwa gets settled back in the spot next to Hongjoong and pulls his plate over. “But no funny business, I’m trying to teach our sweet potato to be a gentleman.”

“If he’s not a gentleman we may have to throw him away and try again,” Hongjoong quips and Seonghwa is chuckling again.

“Or we take out the ‘sweet’ and just call him ‘potato’.”

“Ouch, that’s too harsh, Park.”

The two friends giggle like high schoolers into their breakfasts.

♡

Before Seonghwa comes over, Hongjoong stops by the library on the way home to rent a few parenting and baby books. He flips through the books and admittedly, gets a bit scared with what he reads. It further solidifies his admiration for his best friend.

When he gets a message from Seonghwa that he’s on his way, Hongjoong hides the books in his TV console table drawer.

After some takeout dinner, they’re both in Hongjoong’s en suite to his master bedroom with the alpha in a ratty t-shirt and a towel around his neck to protect his skin from blue dye. 

“But what if your hair turns green?”

“Why would it turn green, Hwa? The box says blue.”

“I don’t know, these things can happen!”

Hongjoong exhales and says, “I trust the box.”

“Do you trust me?”

Hongjoong gives his best friend a deadpan look, “Seonghwa. I’m pretty sure I would give you one of my kidneys.”

Seonghwa narrows his eyes, “why are you only pretty sure—”

“Seonghwa!”

They stare at one another before Seonghwa purses his lips in disapproval. The omega then slips the black latex gloves on his hands. “If your hair turns green…”

“Where are you getting green from?!”

Hongjoong’s hair does not turn green, and to Seonghwa’s relief (and meeting Hongjoong’s expectations), the alpha’s hair is now an electric blue colour once he’s waited the appropriate amount of time and washed the remaining dye out.

They put a movie on Hongjoong’s fancy HD TV and the alpha sits cross legged on the floor so he can sew up a hole in one of Seonghwa’s beloved cardigans while the omega sits behind him on the couch, nursing a bowl of snacks.

“Your head matches our sweet potato’s nursery,” Seonghwa observes as he dips his pretzels into a bowl of melted cheese that Hongjoong microwaved for him. “But your hair is brighter. Are you trying to outshine the baby?”

“Yeah,” Hongjoong plays along. “Only because he’s taking all your attention away.”

Seonghwa munches on his pretzels though he’s blushing when he murmurs, “you know you always come first.”

Hongjoong pauses from where he’s trying to push thread through the needle hole, his hands suddenly clammy.

The TV’s volume isn’t too loud but Hongjoong wishes it was so it could mute the many thoughts racing across his mind.

They’ve already crossed many lines with Seonghwa being inseminated with Hongjoong’s sperm. Their friendship has always been congenial and the omega has felt like Hongjoong’s home since high school: they joke, play flirt, hurl insults, and yet they know each other will be there with a single call.

They’re best friends.

And that’s it.

“Is your rut coming up?” Seonghwa inquires when Hongjoong hasn’t moved or said anything in the past few minutes. 

Hongjoong loops the end of the thread through the back of the needle and ties it off. “In a week or so.”

Seonghwa moves the hardening cheese around in the bowl with his pretzel. “Do you have a partner?”

The newly blue haired man nearly pricks himself in the finger. “Are you offering?”

Like with Seonghwa’s heat, they’ve always avoided this subject and never offer each other, not in their eighteen years of friendship.

Seonghwa shoves a handful of pretzels in his mouth to avoid verbally answering and shrugs his shoulders. That pink blush thoroughly confuses Hongjoong.

“I’m probably gonna hang out here and jerk off until I feel better,” it’s Hongjoong’s turn to shrug.

“I can make you food,” Seonghwa proposes after he swallows all of his pretzels.

“It’s okay, I have the power of delivery and technology on my side.” Hongjoong occupies himself with closing the rip in Seonghwa’s cardigan and hopes the omega gets the hint as the blue haired man would prefer not to discuss this with Seonghwa of all people.

Seonghwa does get the message, but he still says gently, “call me if you need me then.”

Hongjoong pinches the needle between his fingers harder so that the metal digs into his skin painfully. Seonghwa has to know how that sentence sounds, especially on the topic of a rut.

Hongjoong’s jaw clenches and Seonghwa doesn’t say anything about his silence.

month six.

Seonghwa’s second check up falls on the same week that Hongjoong’s skin feels too tight for his body, perspiration beads at his hairline, and he’s always short of breath.

They’re at their usual breakfast spot at absurd-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and Hongjoong has no shame in sticking the extra napkins he asked Wooyoung for underneath his armpits. He’s already shed his sweater, which is not unusual for unpredictable end-of-fall weather, but he knows he looks ridiculous with napkins plastered to his forehead and clearly stuffed down his shirt.

Their waiter hesitantly gives him another stack of napkins and wearily eyes the used ones Hongjoong’s crumpled into a giant ball.

“I’ll throw it out,” Hongjoong responds to Wooyoung’s unspoken question. “Thanks.”

“You, um, you don’t have to come with me to my appointment,” Seonghwa says quietly as he pushes his scrambled eggs around on his plate. Since arriving at the restaurant and giving Hongjoong their usual side hug in greeting, the omega has been flushed from his forehead to where his loose sweater dips just below his collarbones.

“I’m fine,” Hongjoong grits out and aggressively chews his eggs benedict. Today they feel too chalky in his mouth: it’s difficult to swallow and the blue haired man has to gulp it down with water. He grips the water glass in his hand and stares at it intensely as if his glare would change it into coffee. “I miss caffeine,” slips out of his mouth.

“Excuse me,” Seonghwa’s hand immediately shoots into the air and he tries to make eye contact with their waiter from across the semi-busy diner. “Could we get a cup of coffee?”

“No, we will not get a cup of coffee,” Hongjoong shouts after and reaches across the table to put Seonghwa’s hand down.

“A cup of coffee, please—” Seonghwa says firmly as he slaps Hongjoong’s grabby hand away, arm still extended straight up.

“No fucking coffee—”

“Hongjoong-ah, language, and we will take that coffee—”

“Do not bring me the boinking coffee,” Hongjoong points an accusatory finger at the poor waiter who’s clutching the coffee pot in one hand and a waiting mug in the other. “Put the pot down, Wooyoung.”

The waiter does as told and walks away so that the two men cannot call on him again.

“How long is your appointment?” Hongjoong asks when Seonghwa finally lowers his arm.

“Around thirty to forty five minutes,” Seonghwa replies and stabs a sausage with his fork. “I’m getting an ultra sound, doing blood work, and will probably have a full physical.”

“I’m gonna drop you off,” Hongjoong states and shoves the unused napkins into his pants pockets. “There’s a store that I want to check out. It’s in the same plaza as the clinic, can you text me when you’re done?”

“Yeah.”

The two finish their respective breakfasts and pay the bill, with Hongjoong stealing more napkins from the station near the door.

♡

Hongjoong waits with Seonghwa in the lobby of the clinic until Dr. Kang Yeosang calls his name, and then the alpha exits to walk to the store: the jewellery shop that Kyuwook recommended to him.

He knows this is a bad idea. It'll only further delude him in this weird baby situation he and Seonghwa are in, but when he looked at the contact his CEO sent him, he couldn’t help but recognize the area as the same as Seonghwa’s clinic.

Little bells jingle when Hongjoong opens the door and there’s no one inside when he enters. He credits that to the fact that no one buys jewellery at half past 9AM and he must seem like a crazy person.

He definitely feels like a crazy person.

The alpha wipes his brow with his restaurant napkins and scans the interior of the store: it’s cozy and quaint with display cases lining the walls and counters. It’s a little bit of a shoebox as it could probably only fit five adults comfortably, and Hongjoong is more self conscious about the lack of space with his strong scent due to his impending rut.

Hongjoong is about to bail when a glint of silver and diamond in the morning light catches his eye. An infinity silver ring with the tiniest yet most elegant diamond Hongjoong has ever seen is embedded in the center. He walks up to the glass display with the ring and is so entranced by it he leans in close and his nose bumps the surface.

“My cases are clean, but I wouldn’t recommend kissing it,” a young man, no older than Hongjoong himself, pokes his head out from the door leading to the back of the store and Hongjoong jumps away from the display. “Good morning, sir. I don’t typically get many customers so early in the morning!”

“Sorry,” Hongjoong rubs the back of his neck meekly.

“Hey, I’m not complaining about customers! My name is Choi San, how can I help you?”

“Er, I’m Kim Hongjoong,” the blue haired man introduces himself and wipes his palm on his pants before he extends it out to San. “I work with Kyuwook at KQ Entertainment. He recommended your store.”

“Kyuwook!” San shakes the alpha’s hand and gives Hongjoong a jovial smile. “He’s a good friend of mine. How can I help you, Hongjoong-ssi? Are you shopping for a specific occasion?”

Hongjoong deflates, cheeks burning in humiliation. “I’m not, well I mean I— Shit. Sorry... I didn’t mean to— Uh… Can I be transparent with you?”

San blinks at him, “of course, Hongjoong-ssi.”

“I’m having a baby, er…”

“Congratulations!”

“With my best friend.”

“That’s great…?” San says cautiously, trying to gauge the man’s expression.

Hongjoong looks pained, like he’s holding in the biggest secret of his life and if he doesn’t vocalize it he may actually die. His upcoming rut doesn’t make it any better and the alpha whips out his stack of napkins to press one directly onto his forehead.

San gives him a bewildered look but schools his face professionally. “Is it great?”

“It’s fucking— frightfully fantastic,” Hongjoong rushes out but then shrinks in on himself. “Don’t tell my wife I said ‘fuck’, I’m not supposed to swear in front of the sweet potato.”

The man tilts his head in uncertainty, “Hongjoong-ssi, are you having a baby with your best friend or your wife? Or are they the same person? And is it a baby or a sweet potato…?”

Hongjoong grimaces, “it’s all of the above… Kind of. But at the same time, not really… I’m so sorry, San-ssi, this was a mistake—”

“Hongjoong-ssi,” San bends down and lifts up a plastic garbage bin up to Hongjoong and gestures to the napkin on his face. The alpha sheepishly discards the tissue into the garbage and rips a clean one in half to plaster each half on both of his temples.

“You were looking at something before I came out, what was it?” San asks and waves his arm in the direction of the display cases where Hongjoong peered into earlier.

“Uh, this infinity ring,” Hongjoong responds and follows the jeweller towards the set of display cases. He points to the ring in question, “it’s beautiful.”

“Yes! It’s made with 14k white gold in the band and the center is a brilliantly cut diamond. It’s the loving symbol of an unbreakable bond and eternal commitment.” San unlocks the case and pulls out the box with the ring nestled inside and holds it out to the alpha. “If you’re not celebrating a specific occasion and want to honour the birth of your baby, this is the perfect gift to your best friend… Or wife.”

Hongjoong takes the box from the jeweller and stares at it. It would look gorgeous on Seonghwa’s slender fingers.

“I do engravings too,” San says. “I can write your partner’s name inside the band or your name.” Hongjoong frowns so San adds, “I can also do dates. What is your baby’s due date?”

“February,” Hongjoong replies. “Um, the date would be nice.”

“I love it, do you have a name?”

“You can put—” Hongjoong bites his lip. They… Seonghwa hasn’t chosen a name. His constant slip ups may be a sign that this is a terrible idea. “Sweet Potato.”

“February and Sweet Potato, got it. And the ring size?” San accepts the box back from Hongjoong, who mumbles Seonghwa’s ring size, and heads over to his register to write something down on the notepad beside it. When he’s finished writing, he tears the paper off of the pad and holds it out to the alpha. “You can pick it up in one week.”

“Do I need to pay a deposit?”

“I trust you,” San laughs. “It was nice to meet you, Hongjoong-ssi. I can tell you’re going to be a great father. Congratulations again!”

Hongjoong gives him the biggest smile he can muster despite his inner turmoil and stuffs the paper into his pocket. “Thank you, San-ssi…” 

Right as he exits the store, his phone vibrates with a notification that Seonghwa’s finished with his appointment.

month seven.

They change their usual booth to a table to accommodate the omega’s swollen belly at crap-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and both Hongjoong and Seonghwa are struggling to stay awake. At this point, Hongjoong hasn’t had coffee for four months.

“And a cup of coffee please, Wooyoung—” Seonghwa says to their waiter as they hand their menus to him.

“Stop trying to force me to drink coffee,” Hongjoong says grumpily.

“No one is forcing you to do anything, Hongjoong-ah. I want you to drink coffee.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Yes, you do.”

“Says who?”

“Me, I just said it,” Seonghwa rolls his eyes.

The waiter presses his mouth into a thin line as he glances between the two men. “So… Coffee, or…?”

“Yes,” Seonghwa says as Hongjoong says, “no.”

They glare at each other.

“If you don’t give him coffee, he may shrivel up and die,” Seonghwa says in a serious tone and points to Hongjoong’s eyebags. “You don’t want him to die, do you? Look at him, he’s barely hanging on.”

“Don’t be dramatic,” Hongjoong sighs. “Maybe I’m about to die because someone keeps requesting pickles in the middle of the night?”

“Maybe I wouldn’t have to keep asking about pickles if someone stopped buying me dill chips?”

“Dill is—”

“Not a pickle,” the omega says as the alpha says, “a pickle.”

Wooyoung clears his throat loudly so the two men, again, stop glaring at each other. “Listen Mr. Kim, I don’t want you to die. Especially when you’re expecting,” the waiter gestures to Seonghwa’s big belly. “So I would take the coffee. Also, dill is a herb. Dill pickles are cucumbers preserved in brine. Therefore, not a pickle.”

“Aha!” Seonghwa slams a victorious hand on the table.

Hongjoong scoffs, “I will not have the coffee, thank you Wooyoung. And I have noted your comment about dill and dill pickles, but this is between me and my wife so we’re both going to pretend you didn’t say that.”

The waiter shrugs, uncaring, and trots off to punch in their orders.

“Fine, I’ll get you five jars of pickles,” Hongjoong lifts his glasses to scrub a hand over his face and when Seonghwa doesn’t react, he peeks in between his fingers to look at the raven haired man. “What?”

Seonghwa is rigid and his eyes are round with astonishment. There’s that attractive pink blush on his high cheekbones when he stutters out, “n-nothing.”

“Hwa, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing!” Seonghwa moves his fork from one side to the other and cranes his head down so his black bangs fall forward. “I won’t bother you about the coffee anymore. If you stop buying me dill chips.”

Hongjoong chuckles, “deal.”

♡

Hongjoong meets up with Yunho, Juyeon, and Minho at the baby store, Pups and Babies, to pick up the crib, stroller, and high chair while Seonghwa is at work.

The alpha doesn’t tell his friend that he’s doing this. Seonghwa mentioned that he was planning to hire some movers to assist him with the pick up since, being seven months pregnant and not owning a car, he wouldn’t be able to lift anything or transport it.

Hongjoong thought this would be a nice surprise for the omega to come home to everything already done and moved in, but he runs into a significant issue when he speaks with the employee at the register.

“I’m sorry sir, but I can’t give you the order if you aren’t Mr. Park Seonghwa,” the young employee, around nineteen or twenty, whose nametag reads ‘Jongho’, crosses his arms in front of his chest definitively. “Now, if Mr. Park authorized you to pick up his order, that’s no problem. I’ll just have to see the email in which he declares you the authorized person and your ID.”

Hongjoong’s eye twitches in annoyance (and totally not from lack of caffeine). “Look, Jongho. I told you already; I know Park Seonghwa and am acting on his behalf. We’ve probably known each other for longer than you’ve been alive.”

Jongho raises his eyebrows at the blue haired man as if encouraging Hongjoong to rethink that statement. The alpha rolls his eyes; what he just said was more insulting to his age than to Jongho.

“I’m trying to do something nice for him. He’s seven months pregnant, you know, and people that are pregnant can’t be carrying this order.”

“I’m aware, sir, my older cousin is pregnant. But I can’t take your word, sorry. It’s against store policy, and you could totally be lying to me to try to steal Mr. Park’s stuff.”

Hongjoong sighs. He looks over his shoulder at Yunho, Juyeon, and Minho to see if they’ll jump in to help him, but the three men are too busy trying not to make their laughter too obvious to Hongjoong.

“Jongho… Please. I’m not a thief! I’m—” Hongjoong checks the time on his watch and takes a moment to look up at the ceiling to collect himself. He inhales deeply and gives the employee a shaky smile, “I’m Mr. Park’s husband and I’m just trying to do something nice for my hard working spouse…”

Jongho looks past Hongjoong at Yunho, Juyeon, and Minho. They all nod half-heartedly. The employee gives Hongjoong a sly grin, “okay, sir. I’m going to call Mr. Park on the phone number he left on the order and once he verifies you as his authorized person, I can give it to you.

The employee picks up the store phone and dials the number on the screen. Hongjoong reaches over the register to stop him but he doesn’t want to touch the young man, so he yanks on the cord attaching it to the base.

“Please don’t!”

Hongjoong isn’t fast enough and Jongho is happily chirping into the receiver, “hello! Is this Mr. Park Seonghwa?”

Hongjoong lets go of the phone cord to faceplant onto the counter.

“Hi, Mr. Park, my name is Jongho at Pups and Babies, and I have your order of a 2-in-1 convertible crib, an adjustable height high chair, and a travel system stroller.” Jongho pauses to let Seonghwa speak and his eyes flit to Hongjoong. “Yes, Mr. Park. I actually have your ‘husband’ here claiming to know you for as long as I’ve been alive, and he’s trying to steal your order.”

Hongjoong hisses, “I told you it’s a surprise and I’m not—”

“Yes, of course, sir! Here he is,” Jongho cheerily holds out the phone to Hongjoong.

The blue haired man gives the employee a betrayed look before taking the phone and pressing it to his ear. Before he can greet his best friend, Seonghwa is sighing. “Hongjoong-ah? Why are you stealing my order?”

“I’m not stealing your order, I’m picking it up for you so you don’t have to. Saves you time and money! How am I the bad guy here?”

“Why didn’t you tell me? I would’ve authorized you beforehand. Instead you’re bullying a store employee.”

“I’m not bullying him!”

In front of him, Jongho gives the alpha a smug look like one would give their sibling when their parent is scolding them. 

The bastard.

“Okay, can you please authorize me so I can take this shit— stuff. So I can take this stuff home,” Hongjoong grumbles.

“Get your ID ready and give the phone back to Jongho.”

Hongjoong hands the phone back to the employee and pulls out his wallet to take out his driver’s license.

When Jongho wheels out the boxes of their order to the curb, Yunho, Juyeon, and Minho thank the employee and snicker with him on what he had done to Hongjoong.

The blue haired alpha snaps at his friends to help him load the three heavy boxes into the trunk of his car as he struggles to lift the crib.

All the trouble is worth it when Seonghwa arrives home and bursts into tears when he sees everything in his den. Hongjoong bribed his three friends with the promise of beer and fried chicken if they stayed to assist him with assembly, cleaning their mess of parts and tools, and breaking down the cardboard boxes to be able to toss it in Seonghwa’s apartment’s recycling.

He knows how Seonghwa feels about a mess.

“This is too generous, thank you so much!” Seonghwa gives each of his friends a big hug and tries not to get their sweaters wet with his tears.

Yunho confirms next weekend for Hongjoong to treat them to a meal and he, Juyeon, and Minho wave to Hongjoong and Seonghwa when they leave.

Hongjoong isn’t sure why, but once they’re alone, he feels… Awkward.

Seonghwa stands in the middle of his small den and smiles dopily at the crib and stroller while rubbing his belly.

The alpha pokes his head into the room and knocks on the doorframe to get the omega’s attention, “Hwa? I’m gonna head out too.”

“Really?” Seonghwa snaps out of his daze and pouts at the blue haired man. He walks up to the door, nearly bumps into Hongjoong, and the two stand, squished, in at the entrance of the den. “Joongie, stay the night.”

Hongjoong swallows thickly and he glances down at Seonghwa’s protruding belly. “Uh, no, I…”

His gaze must have lingered too long as the taller man grabs Hongjoong’s wrists to place his hands on his stomach. Hongjoong’s palms cradle the underside of Seonghwa’s belly and almost immediately feels a kick against his hand.

His vision blurs behind his glasses. The alpha moves to bring a hand up to wipe away the tears, but Seonghwa is the one to step closer and bring his hand up to Hongjoong’s face. The omega has his sleeve wrapped over his fist as his fingers delicately brush away the wetness lining Hongjoong’s lower lashline.

Seonghwa gently takes Hongjoong’s glasses off his face and uses his other hand to lift the alpha’s chin.

Hongjoong blinks up at his best friend.

God, Seonghwa is so incredibly beautiful.

“Please stay,” Seonghwa whispers. In a poignant tone, the omega says, “be with me.”

“Tonight,” Hongjoong adds for his own sanity. His heart might jump out of his throat if he doesn’t clarify this for his brain, “I’ll be with you tonight.”

The corners of Seonghwa’s lips downturn but he flips his expression quickly. “I still have your extra toothbrush from last time.”

Then the omega calmly removes Hongjoong’s hands from his belly, gives him back his glasses, and slides past him at the doorframe without another word.

month eight.

With the xikers’ album release, Seonghwa’s due date, and the lack of coffee, Hongjoong feels like a train wreck waiting for the track to run out. 

After their moment in Seonghwa’s den-turned-nursery, Hongjoong stayed the night and woke up to being the big spoon, arms supporting underneath the omega’s belly. He ended up slipping out of Seonghwa’s apartment before the raven haired man stirred awake and texted his friend that he needed to put in extra hours at the studio.

Things have been… Different. Tense. Slightly excruciating for Hongjoong’s mental health as this whole baby-sweet-potato situation has him questioning his and Seonghwa’s friendship.

They’re at their (changed) usual table at lousy-o’clock-in-the-morning (8AM) and the two can barely look at each other once they give their menus to Wooyoung.

“Are you uncomfortable?” Hongjoong asks the omega, referring to Seonghwa shifting around in his seat.

Seonghwa winces as he tries to adjust his position, hands underneath his belly. His answer clearly contradicts his expression when he says, “I’m fine. The sweet potato is just… Heavy and restless. I can’t wait until he comes out of me.”

“When are you taking leave?”

“Next month.”

“Could you put in a request now?”

“I’m fine, Hongjoong-ah,” Seonghwa says shortly. “I don’t mind working. I’ll be out of it for the next two years anyway.”

“Do you need anything else?”

Seonghwa regards Hongjoong from across the table. 

“There is something.”

Hongjoong’s fork hangs over his poached eggs. “What is it? How much is it?”

Seonghwa pushes his sausages around to avoid answering.

When the silence stretches out, Hongjoong extends a hand over the table to still the omega’s hand. “Seonghwa-yah. What’s wrong?”

They can’t hide anything from each other. It’s a blessing and a curse. The only thing Hongjoong’s been able to keep from his best friend, his whole world, is the fact that he’s undeniably and irrevocably in love with him. Has his front been slipping in the past eight months?

Seonghwa meets his gaze and drops his fork to the plate with a clatter. He flips his hand to hold Hongjoong’s in his, fingers intertwining in between the alpha’s. “Hongjoong-ah. Are you happy?”

Hongjoong, stunned, stumbles over his words, “y-yes. Er, why wouldn’t I be? Maybe I’d be happier if I had some coffee…”

Seonghwa doesn’t laugh at his joke and squeezes the alpha’s hand. “No, I mean… Are you happy with— Are you happy with our situation?”

Hongjoong considers his next sentence and then says carefully, “I’m happy for you.”

Seonghwa lets out a strangled noise, “I asked if you were happy.”

Hongjoong looks at Seonghwa’s belly before he can stop himself. Is he happy? He’s happy for Seonghwa.

That’s not the question.

Are you happy with our situation?

The answer: no.

Hongjoong is miserable. His best friend is carrying his baby and is due next month. Even though he’s been there for the omega for appointments, shopping, baby decisions, emotional and physical support, and random pregnancy cravings, what does it matter if he can’t be honest with Seonghwa?

He wants to wake up next to the raven haired man after a night of movies, cuddling, and stomachs full of pickles and abura soba. He wants to brew Seonghwa the most superb coffee in the morning and smooch their sweet potato awake in his crib. He wants to dote over their sweet potato in his azure blue nursery, the perfect colour, and kiss his omega and his pup with every moment he gets. 

Hongjoong selfishly wants it all.

But it’s not what Seonghwa wants. It can’t be what Seonghwa wants. That’s why he asked Hongjoong to donate his sperm instead of asking him to be his alpha.

If he asked, Hongjoong would embrace him in a less than a heartbeat.

The blue haired man can’t bring himself to look at Seonghwa when he mumbles, “no.”

He realizes his mistake too late when Seonghwa swiftly retracts his hand.

“Wait, Hwa, that’s not what I—”

“I’m sorry. I have to go to work,” the omega says stoically. “Do you mind if we get the bill? You can stay, I just have to go.”

Seonghwa waves to get Wooyoung’s attention and requests a takeout box for himself and the usual one bill for both of them.

Hongjoong can only watch regretfully as Seonghwa packs his half finished breakfast, taps his credit card on the machine, and gets up to leave.

♡

Hongjoong and Seonghwa don’t talk.

Hongjoong sends the omega texts to check in on him and the baby, but the replies leave no room for conversation. They’re short and to the point and Hongjoong relies on his friends to help the raven haired man as he wants to give Seonghwa space.

The alpha opens his desk drawer to reveal the ring he purchased from Choi San tucked away, forgotten, in the back corner.

month nine.

Hongjoong sits alone at their usual restaurant at 8AM in the morning with the ring box in his pocket. He spent ten minutes going back and forth between the booth and the table until Wooyoung made the decision for him and placed two menus on the original booth.

“It’s just me today, Wooyoung,” Hongjoong murmurs quietly and the waiter blinks at him with a knowing expression, but Hongjoong doesn’t catch it.

“Oh, has Mr. Park given birth?”

“No,” Hongjoong looks down at the menu, “er, I don’t know.”

The waiter asks, “you two aren’t getting a divorce, are you?”

That has Hongjoong hollowly chuckling. It sure feels like it. But he and Seonghwa were never married in the first place. They were never together.

Good grief, what a mess.

“Mr. Kim,” Wooyoung slowly removes the menu from Hongjoong’s hands and picks up the other one. “May I suggest takeout instead?”

“Wooyoung…”

“I know it’s none of my business,” Wooyoung says. “But I think it’ll make you feel better. You can take the breakfast to Mr. Park… And apologize?”

Hongjoong gives him a grim smile, “I don’t really have anything to apologize for.”

And he doesn’t. He could apologize to Seonghwa for his answer last month to his question of happiness, but then what? Live in pain and pining for the rest of his life and watch as his best friend and child find a family with some other alpha, beta, or omega?

Where does Hongjoong draw the line?

“I can tell you both love each other a lot,” Wooyoung says sincerely. “Whatever rough patch you’re facing, I know you’ll get through it. A bond like yours is once in a lifetime… I’m gonna sound cliche and sappy, but I think you and Mr. Park are soulmates.”

With Wooyoung’s words, the ring box burns in Hongjoong’s pocket. He didn’t have any rhyme or reason to take it out with him today but after this conversation with the waiter, it might be a sign.

“I’m gonna punch in your usual order to go. And I’m not telling you to do anything…” Wooyoung smiles warmly at Hongjoong, the first the alpha has ever seen from him. “I’ll be back.”

The food comes out hot, neatly packaged in a paper bag, and a little bit heavier than Hongjoong would expect of their usual orders. The blue haired man thanks Wooyoung before leaving the restaurant.

When he gets into his car, the alpha heads straight to the Seonghwa’s publishing company to surprise the omega. The receptionist greets him excitedly and comments on the fact that she hasn’t seen Hongjoong in a while and tells him that Seonghwa didn’t come to work this morning. In passing, Seonghwa’s boss confirms that the omega called in.

He drives to Seonghwa’s apartment but the man isn’t there either.

Hongjoong starts to worry. 

Hongjoong checks out the fertility clinic but Dr. Kang Yeosang denies seeing Seonghwa.

He drives around town to every place he thinks Seonghwa could be: Pups and Babies, the grocery shop in the pickle aisle, the abura soba restaurant, and he even goes back to Seonghwa’s apartment to ask Mingi.

Then he calls their friends: Yunho and Soyeon inform Hongjoong that they did speak with Seonghwa earlier in the morning but the older man didn’t mention skipping work. Minho says Seonghwa only texted him last night to ask if he could borrow a blanket. Soojin tells him that Seonghwa confirmed dinner plans with her for next weekend if his water didn’t break by then.

Juyeon is his saviour when he notifies Hongjoong that he dropped Seonghwa off… At KQ Entertainment.

Hongjoong has never gotten to his company in less than twenty minutes but he manages it while maintaining the speed limit as he is not a bad driver (totally not a jab at Christian-“Ian”-fucking-Yu).

He struts into his building, (cold) breakfast takeout in hand, and is greeted by security, who beams at him. “Hongjoong-ssi! Your wife is here—”

“Where?” Hongjoong doesn’t bother correcting the man and security points upwards.

“He went up to your floor. Not even ten minutes ago.”

Hongjoong thanks him and rushes to the elevator.

The alpha politely greets his colleagues with a hint of urgency and they all get the message that he’s in a hurry as he makes his way to his office-studio.

His door swings inwards and he sees Seonghwa, belly big and beautiful, sitting with one leg propped up on his couch. There’s a paper bag in front of him on Hongjoong’s low table and Seonghwa startles when he spots Hongjoong at the door.

He rocks forward and he struggles to stand, so before he can get on his feet Hongjoong dashes to his best friend.

“Sit,” Hongjoong insists, places his own bag beside Seonghwa’s on the table, and kneels in front of the omega. “Seonghwa-yah, I have something to say…”

“Me too,” Seonghwa takes Hongjoong’s hands into his and his gorgeous features are twisted with distress. Hongjoong wants to kiss the worry off his face, “Hongjoong-ah, I um, I brought you breakfast.” The omega glances at his paper bag which is identical to Hongjoong’s.

Hongjoong chuckles in disbelief and gestures to his own paper bag. “Oh my God, I brought you breakfast.”

Seonghwa teases, “I brought you coffee, too. I bet you didn’t buy that. So I win.”

“I’m not drinking it. And this is not a competition.”

The two friends look at each other and burst into a fit of giggles.

When their laughter subsides, the omega speaks first. “Hongjoong-ah… I’m sorry. You’ve done— You do so much for me that sometimes I have to thank some otherworldly entity that you’re in my life. When I asked for you to be the father of our sweet potato I was being selfish.”

Hongjoong grips Seonghwa’s hands tighter, “Hwa—”

“I didn’t consider the logistics of this. How you felt about it and how you would feel after it. I also selfishly thought…” Seonghwa frowns. “I thought this would bring us closer. You were my first choice because I wanted you to be a part of our sweet potato’s life. I’ve only ever referred to him as ‘ours’ since I thought we could— That maybe we could—”

Seonghwa’s eyes go round and his full lips pucker out. He looks hopeful as he stares at Hongjoong. And then he says something that has Hongjoong falling and drowning all over again like from month one.

“Be together.”

Hongjoong sniffles and tilts his head down to rest his forehead on the raven haired man’s kneecap. “Fuck,” the alpha immediately takes a hand out of Seonghwa’s hold to push it against his pregnant belly, “shit, sorry, Sweet Potato.”

Seonghwa lets out a watery giggle and Hongjoong reaches into his pocket to pull out the ring box.

He’s already on his knees. Hongjoong presents the box to Seonghwa and his doe eyes widen in recognition and shock.

The alpha pops it up to reveal the infinity ring, “Seonghwa-yah, I— I’m insanely in love with you. I don’t know if I ever would have the courage to confess like this if it weren’t for our sweet potato… This doesn’t have to be a wedding ring. It can be whatever you want it to be. I just—” Hongjoong swallows a sob, “I love you. Park Seonghwa, will you marry— uh, be with me?”

Seonghwa surges forward and cups the back of Hongjoong’s neck to connect their mouths. Once their lips press together, Hongjoong feels like everything falls into place.

The afternoon sun streaming through the window feels like the perfect temperature. The electricity from the kiss has Hongjoong seeing stars behind his eyelids. His heart may separate from his body with how hard it’s beating in elation and he wants to plaster himself against the omega to get closer.

When they break apart, Seonghwa moves in again and licks into Hongjoong’s mouth. The omega’s coffee and floral scent consumes him, enveloping all of his senses. Hongjoong would replace oxygen with Seonghwa’s scent if he could, but he wants an answer to his question and to put the ring on Seonghwa’s pretty fingers.

“Hwa,” Hongjoong moans and his nostrils flare at the intensity of Seonghwa’s scent. “Hwa, do you want to be with me?”

“Joong-ah,” Seonghwa pants and when Hongjoong’s eyes blink open to look at the omega, his face is flushed and his expression is panicked. “N-No.”

Hongjoong feels like he just got slapped, “no?”

“No, not no— Not no to your question, but oh my God— Hongjoong,” Seonghwa places his hands on the alpha’s chest to push him away and frantically motions to the dark and wet spot on the alpha’s couch that was definitely not there before. “I think my water broke!”

“Holy fuck!” Hongjoong springs to his feet and helps Seonghwa stand. “Oh my— Fuck, shit. What the fuck do we do?”

“We stop swearing,” Seonghwa glares at the alpha as he clutches his belly and leans on said alpha.

Hongjoong gives the raven haired man a sheepish smile and guides him to the door of his office-studio. “My wife is in labour!”

The entire floor erupts into a frenzy. A few of Hongjoong’s colleagues hold out cups of water and boxes of tissue to Seonghwa while Kyungmun supports the omega opposite to Hongjoong. Jonghoon trails after them with a random blanket and pillow as they make their way towards the elevator.

“Let’s go into Kyungmun’s studio,” Hongjoong suggests. “You can give birth there!”

“Why not your studio?” Kyungmun begins to protest.

“Because I already offered yours to Seonghwa five months ago.”

“Who told you to do that?!”

Kyuwook joins in on the herd of people escorting Seonghwa, “Seonghwa-yah, you can use my studio, it’ll establish a connection between your baby and the idol environment—”

“I am not giving birth in a studio!” Seonghwa yells hysterically and fixes a hard glare on Hongjoong, “call an ambulance, Kim Hongjoong!”

♡

After twelve hours of labour, they welcome their sweet potato into the world and Hongjoong cannot stop the waterworks. When the baby is tested, swaddled, and sleeping, he’s first given to Seonghwa to hold and then the omega gently shifts him over to Hongjoong.

The baby is sound asleep after crying and screaming his lungs out and now Hongjoong is the one sobbing uncontrollably into the bundle of joy. “He’s so small… And red… He looks like an uncooked sweet potato.”

“He’s freshly peeled,” Seonghwa jests with an arm over his eyes. He’s reclined in the bed and he looks exhausted and relieved. His black hair is sticking up on one side and plastered with sweat to his forehead on the other.

“You’re so beautiful,” Hongjoong says serenely to his best friend (?) and the omega lowers his arm to look at the alpha.

He smiles prettily and leans into the blue haired man to press his lips softly against the alpha’s.

“Hongjoong-ah,” Seonghwa whispers into the kiss. “Let’s make another one. We can name it ‘parsnip’ while it grows.”

Hongjoong shakes his head with unease, “isn’t it recommended to wait at least a year and half before trying again?”

“So serious,” Seonghwa playfully flicks his forehead. “But it makes me happy that you know that.”

“I read a lot about this stuff.”

Seonghwa kisses him again.

Hongjoong hums into the kiss, “and don’t think I don’t know that you’re subliminally trying to get me to like vegetables because you’re naming our children after root vegetables. I like sweet potatoes, but we are not naming our second ‘parsnip’.”

Seonghwa snaps his fingers, “darn. You caught me.”

Hongjoong maneuvers the baby back into Seonghwa’s arms and then wraps his arms around the omega. The alpha sighs joyously, and for the first time in nine months, feels clear and content. Gone is that spiral of helplessly falling and drowning. “I can’t wait to have coffee.”

Seonghwa elbows him affectionately, “me too.”

The two contentedly rock their little one as they bask in their newfound familial bliss and Hongjoong whispers to the baby, “hey, Sweet Potato… You better love abura soba. But no pickles, okay?”

Seonghwa giggles and Hongjoong wastes no time in kissing that giggle.