A/N: A bit of a filler chapter, but I hope y’all enjoy!
TW: Casual discussion of sex, butt patting shenanigans, slightly suggestive make out scene
“‘“What’s up, party people?”’”
“For fuck’s sake, Han Jisung!” Hyunjin startled, lifting his head off your shoulder and glaring at the beta as he stepped into the studio. “We are trying to have a moment and you come in here screaming? It’s hard enough already with a sweaty Changbin in the corner.”
Innie choked on a cracker as he cackled and you handed him his water as Jisung squatted behind him and wrapped his arms around the younger alpha. “I think sweaty Changbins actually make moments all the more special. There are people all over the world trying to have moments with their loved ones but they don’t have a sweaty Changbin setting the mood, so their efforts are futile.”
You glanced over at Changbin to see him rising from the floor with a smirk. Quicker than you would have expected, he launched himself over to Jisung, throwing himself at the beta and pinning him down to the floor. Changbin’s knees were on either side of Jisung’s waist while his elbows were resting by the younger boy’s ears. The entirety of Jisung’s face was being enveloped by Changbin’s chest as the alpha puffed it out, pressing his weight into the floor and sandwiching Jisung.
“How do you like my sweat now, Hannie? Is this a special enough moment for you? Are you getting choked up by my sweat?”
“I’m getting choked up by your stench! Hyung! Let me go, you barbarian!”
Next to you, Hyunjin was watching the two with a bored expression and Jeongin’s eyes were crinkled in amusement as he shoved his last cracker in his mouth.
Suddenly, Changbin yelped loudly and rolled off of Han in the direction of the couch, clutching his left pec.
A few feet away, Minho set down his water bottle and uncrossed his legs. He sighed and leaned forward over Changbin. “What happened?”
Jisung scuttled over Changbin and made his way to the couch, where he took up residence under Minho’s arm. “I bit him,” he declared, a proud smile lighting up his face.
“On the tit?” Hyunjin questioned, raising his eyebrows.
Jisung scoffed. “Of course it was on the tit, it was the only place my mouth could reach.” He pushed himself closer to Minho like he was trying to merge their bodies together. “It was his fault, really. I was complimenting him and he practically suffocated me. I was just being fair.”
Minho brushed his lips along Jisung’s forehead. “Of course you were, jagi. How was your vocal lesson?”
Han hummed. “It was fine. I drank some nasty restorative tea, I learned some new exercises. Sang a song. Now, I’m hungry.”
Changbin sat up from where he had been rolling around, still clutching his chest. “Well, I would have offered you some of my barbecue chips, but you chose violence so now I’m going to eat them in front of you and watch you starve.”
Jisung’s eyes widened. “The good barbecue chips? From the vending machine on the fourth floor?”
At Changbin’s nod, Jisung turned a betrayed face towards Minho. “Hyung! You let them have a snack break, took them to the good vending machines, and you didn’t even get me anything?”
Minho rolled his eyes. “I didn’t do any of that. Jinnie and Y/N came here a few minutes ago when they finished talking and brought snacks for the three of us. I’m sure that if they knew you were coming, they would have brought you something as well. For now, I have a protein bar in my bag, and when someone goes up to get Channie-hyung and the others in a few minutes, you can go too and stop by the good vending machines on the way. Okay?”
Jisung’s eyes sparkled as he looked at Minho. “Okay, hyung. Thank you!” He swooped in and pressed a chaste kiss to the side of Minho’s neck before bouncing over to a duffel bag on the other side of the room and rifling through it.
You smiled at Minho as Changbin rolled over to Hyunjin and demanded a kiss on his chest to heal it. “Wow, do they even need a caretaker when they have you?”
He kept his eyes on Jisung as he answered you. “Well, somebody has had to keep these lemmings alive before you got here. Yah!” he shouted at Jisung, “Don’t forget we’re going out to dinner later, only one bar and then the barbecue chips.”
Jisung walked back over, holding an unwrapped protein bar in his hand and took his previous place under Minho’s arm. His left cheek was stuffed with the bite he had taken, but he paused in his chewing to speak. “You know, lemmings don’t actually commit mass suicide. That’s a myth that Disney came up with for some reason during the 1950s.”
Jeongin butted in. “Maybe he was just calling you a lemming because you’re a rodent.”
Jisung gasped and promptly choked on his protein bar. Between coughs, he specified, “Hyung said lemmings, as in more than one, my fellow rodent!”
Jeongin scoffed. “Please. I’m the one person in this group that can take care of themselves and hyung knows it. That’s why I’m his favorite,” he added with a smug smile. “But also, I’m a fox. I eat rodents for breakfast.”
Hyunjin’s head popped up from where he had been trying to escape his own less intense Changbin chest smothering. “Can I be a rodent? Innie can eat me for breakfast!”
Jisung’s nose wrinkled. “Gross.”
“That’s not what you said when literally this morning-”
“Jin-ah!” Minho barked. “I know that you are all happy that you can talk about your sex lives freely in front of Y/N, but that does not mean that she is happy to hear the dirty details. Also, we all know how the bickering between you two ends, and we don’t have time for any rendezvouses before dinner.”
Um, Y/N would actually be very happy to hear the dirty details, and also she could definitely clear up some time on her schedule if you wanted to ‘rendezvous’.
You were quite glad that no secondary gender presentation came with mind-reading capabilities. The last thing you needed was to be fired for sexual harassment.
It was a bit weird to have horny thoughts for your clients. Your previous employers were more family-focused packs, where you spent most of the time babysitting the kids, while this was a pack of stunning, mega-talented men who were all in a relationship with each other.
And wasn’t there some kind of ethical boundary? You had heard several stories of caretakers becoming pack members of their clients, it was fairly natural to become close with people who you knew everything about. However, this felt different. This was a globally famous band whose members already dealt with crazy fans and antis and saesangs, and they didn’t need another crazy person right under their noses, especially not one who knew all of their personal business.
It’s just a few celebrity crushes, you told yourself. Once I get to know them more in-person, the feelings will fade away.
It didn’t seem likely, but you held on to that theory with both hands.
Suddenly, an alarm went off, pulling you from your thoughts and making Jeongin and Hyunjin jump on either side of you. Minho reached over with the arm not pinned down by Jisung, and grabbed his phone.
“Okay, time for one more run-through before we get the others and head home to get ready for dinner.”
The boys groaned but got up anyway, Jisung and Hyunjin complaining when Minho forced them to practice as well, saying that they weren’t even supposed to be there. “Well, then don’t go to places you aren’t supposed to go,” he responded, giving them each a pat on the butt.
As they moved into the beginning formation, you moved to gather up the snack wrappers and throw them away, except for the half-full bag of barbecue chips which you set next to you as you settled back on the couch to watch them.
The choreography looked even better with two more members, each bringing their own energy to the dance.
Contrarily to the way that the song had ended when you and Hyunjin had first shown up, the boys were panting a bit, but other than that, relatively normal. There was no collapsing on the floor or gasping for air, though they were a bit zombie-esque as they each stumbled to grab their bags.
Hyunjin and Han flopped down on the couch next to you as the others wiped off their sweat and applied their scent blockers and Changbin finished off his barbecue chips, eating them in Jisung’s face as promised while the other boy tried to shove him away.
“Okay.” Minho stretched his arms skyward as he finished. “Hannie is going to go get his barbecue chips, so Hyunjin, you go with him to get the others.”
Hyunjin whined and draped his arm around the back of the couch behind your neck. You tried not to react too obviously, but you felt your shoulders tense anyway.
“Hyung, why do I have to go? Can’t Innie or Changbin-hyung do it instead?”
Minho dropped his arms and turned to narrow his eyes at Hyunjin. “If I send Changbin, Channie-hyung will ask him for advice on something ‘real quick’, and then he will be sucked into producer mode and dragging Jisung down with him until they finish ten songs and suddenly it’s past midnight and our reservation has flown by.”
Out of the corner of your eye, you saw Changbin hunched over his bag, smiling mirthfully.
Hyunjin pouted, maddeningly close to your face. “Hyung, Seungmin and Lix would stop them.”
Minho snorted. “You think those two chaos monsters would stop them? They would slip out unnoticed to go to dinner themselves, happy about the extra space at the table. Maybe Yongbok would be able to convince Seungmin to drag the rest of us along.”
Hyunjin shifted in his seat and you could feel his bicep flexing against your neck.
“Hyuuuuuung. What about Innie? He wouldn’t get sucked into producing anything, and Channie-hyung would drop anything if Innie told him he was hungry.”
Minho crossed his arms and moved to stand directly in front of Hyunjin. “Because he did several hours of dance and did a good job, so he gets to rest.”
“Yah, why didn’t you use that excuse for me?”
Minho smirked, still staring at Hyunjin as he ignored Changbin. “I suppose I could do it, but that would mean doing something as a favor to you, and I’m still mad at you.”
Hyunjin whined. “I’m sorry that I didn’t wish Dori a happy gotcha day! I didn’t realize that everyone else knew about it!”
Minho narrowed his eyes, prompting you to intervene. “I could do it.”
Everyone paused and turned their gazes to you. Feeling insecure under their gazes, you shrugged. “Jisung knows the way so I could go with him to get the others if you all want to stay here.”
Immediately, Minho started shaking his head. “No. Absolutely not.” Oh. You felt a stabbing sensation in your heart before he went on. “You are not seeing that studio before we have the chance to clean it. The stench is enough to send you to the mountains to live life in a cave as a hermit and never speak to any humans ever again. Changbinnie’s sweat is like an air freshener compared to that room. Hyunjin will go. And next time, he will remember to wish my master a proper gotcha day, complete with a present and treats.”
Hyunjin sighed and rose from the couch. Once he was behind Minho, he rolled his eyes theatrically at you. You tried your best not to laugh, but when Minho whipped around, causing Hyunjin to flinch, you couldn’t keep it in. Jisung had also seen the whole thing and was cackling beside you.
Changbin looked up from where he had been spread out on the floor having a conversation with Innie. His eyebrows furrowed as he watched Hyunjin grab Jisung and scamper out of the room, the younger boy still laughing. “Do I even want to know?”
Jeongin, who had been watching the entire thing from over Changbin’s shoulder just rolled his eyes. “They were laughing at Hyune-hyung’s anti tissue reflexes.”
Changbin nodded and rolled over. Minho smirked and stalked over to Jeongin. “If you were any less cute, you also would have developed anti-tissue reflexes by now, you menace.”
Innie propped up his chin with his hand and raised his eyebrows. “It’s okay, hyungie. Jisungie-hyung left. You can admit that I’m your favorite.”
Minho stepped over Changbin before sitting on his back. The younger alpha wheezed but didn’t protest or move while Minho told Jeongin, “You’re my favorite maknae. Isn’t that enough?”
Innie rolled his eyes. “I know I’m your favorite. I’m everyone’s favorite. I’m probably already Y/N-noona’s favorite.”
Three gazes turned to you and you startled. “Ah, you’re all tied for my favorite?”
Jeongin groaned. “That’s boring. And probably not true, noona. You’ve known Channie-hyung the longest, you gave him food, and he brought you coffee. He’s definitely your favorite.”
You snorted. “I’ve known him exactly one day longer than I’ve known you, it’s not like we’re childhood besties.”
Jeongin narrowed his eyes in thought. “I need to beat him. Then I can manipulate you just like the others.”
Changbin squawked indignantly while Minho smiled proudly. “That’s my maknae. I’m glad to see that my efforts to corrupt you have paid off sufficiently, even with Chan-hyung trying to thwart me at every turn.”
Jeongin smiled sweetly. “Don’t forget, I can manipulate you too, hyungie.” He stood up to press a kiss to Minho’s head, receiving a soft butt pat in return, before striding over and dropping down next to you on the couch. “You gave Channie-hyung food, noona. Will you give me food as well?” He batted his eyelashes like the main damsel of a 1960s film.
Two could play at that game.
You leaned in and poked his dimple. “I already got you the crackers, didn’t I, aegi-alpha? Looks like the next move is up to you. Where’s my coffee?”
Jeongin playfully nipped at your finger. “I’ll get you coffee tomorrow if you admit that I’m your favorite.”
“Well what if I ask one of the others to get me coffee and they do it without asking for anything in return? Then they will probably be my favorite.”
“Yah, Y/N!” You both turned to Changbin, still pinned on the floor underneath Minho, but smirking nonetheless. “You want me to get you coffee tomorrow?”
A smack rang out, echoing against the mirrored walls and wooden floor followed by a sharp whine as Minho slapped Changbin’s butt. “You have that magazine interview with me and Kim Seungmin tomorrow at five in the morning. I doubt you or Y/N wants to wake up that early just for you to give her a coffee. Looks like you can’t be the favorite, Changbinnie.”
Changbin scowled and wiggled, making a show of trying to dislodge Minho like he was a parasite. “I may not be the favorite today or tomorrow, but my time will come. I’ll write a title track all about Y/N and it will be amazing and it will go viral. People will be doing dance covers from all around the globe. Which one of you can do that?”
Jeongin crossed his arms. “I’m not so sure the company will agree to that, hyung.”
Changbin shrugged as best as he could while being pinned to the ground. “It doesn’t have to have her name or anything. You know our songs are all about subtext. Or did you think that Red Lights was about stoplights?”
“Or that Drive was about driving?” Minho piped up.
“Or that Taste is about Korean barbecue?”
Jeongin smiled widely. “I’m pretty sure that they were actually about stoplights and driving and food. Maybe you two are just perverts.”
Changbin smacked the floor. “Yah, I’m not the pervert! All of my songs are completely innocent!”
Minho smirked and leaned in to murmur into Changbin’s ear. “Wasn’t Yongbok’s section of Taste inspired by the time you two-”
“No!” Jeongin clamped his hands over his ears. “We are not talking about that right now! Hyung, you literally said that we shouldn’t talk about the dirty details of our sex lives in front of noona, and here you go!” He turned to you. “Noona, I am so sorry that these hooligans have no filter. I would tell you that they’re not always like this, but we all know that it would be a lie. Sorry in advance for all the things you will have to deal with. I don’t know how much the company is paying you, but it’s not enough and you should have asked for more.”
Shit, baby, I would do this for free.
“It’s okay, Innie. I sort of knew what I was signing up for. You may be world famous and crazy talented and everyone puts you up on a pedestal, but you’re also just a bunch of hormonal twenty-year-olds who live together and are a pack and go through heats and ruts. Even though I haven’t worked for a pack on this level of fame before, I am specifically trained to ensure that everyone I’m looking after has a healthy sex life. Even if you’re not used to talking about sex with someone you’re not in a relationship with, and I’m not used to talking about sex with someone as famous as you, I hope that you will eventually become comfortable enough with me to say whatever you want without any filter.”
Three sets of eyes blinked at you before Minho started up again. “Does that mean you want to hear about how Bbokie begs Changbin to blow his back out?”
You let out a startled laugh. “I mean, if you’re comfortable sharing it, I wouldn’t mind. I will say that since Felix isn’t here to give his consent, maybe we leave that story for later.”
Minho pouted briefly before the door was thrown open. “Noona! Innie!” Felix practically flew to the couch and landed halfway in your lap and halfway in Jeongin’s.
Minho’s eyes widened a fraction before a more serious expression formed. “Speak of the devil. Or angel. Yongbok, do you want to tell Y/N about the origins of Taste?”
Seungmin joined Minho on top of Changbin, Jisung settled down between Seungmin’s legs, happily chomping his way through a bag of chips, and Hyunjin came over to sit on the couch on Jeongin’s other side.
Chan stayed in the doorway, hands in his sweatshirt pockets. “What exactly are we doing?”
Felix had been too busy peeling off the very edge of Jeongin’s scent blocker to hear Minho’s question or Chan’s, and the others didn’t do anything to stop him.
Felix seemed focused on trying to get at Jeongin’s scent without having to take the scent blocker all the way off, but evidently he gave up and peeled off the whole thing, wadding it into a ball and tossing it over his shoulder. It was only a second before Felix leaned in and you saw a flash of pink as his tongue began to flick over Jeongin’s scent gland repeatedly. The little kitten licks quickly evolved into something slower and more deliberate. Jeongin tilted his head back and tugged on Felix’s middle, his large hands almost completely overtaking the omega’s small waist. You were half sure that you heard a whimper, though you couldn’t be sure which of them it had come from.
You were completely frozen at the two doing this practically in your lap. Felix had shifted his weight so that it was mostly on Innie, but his leg remained thrown over yours.
Felix’s scent was still covered up by his own scent blocker, but with Jeongin’s blocker off and everyone else’s on, the buttery toast scent filled the room, dripping with affection and desire, along with a little pride that he was the one Felix had chosen to seek out.
However, the others didn’t look too put out. Everyone else was just as transfixed on Felix and Jeongin as you, if not more so, yet there was not a trace of jealousy in the air.
On the other side of Jeongin, you could see Hyunjin’s eyes darken. His fingers started to fiddle with the hem of Felix’s oversized t-shirt.
Changbin had his chin resting on his crossed arms, posture relaxed, but eyes sharp and focused.
Seungmin and Jisung were tense as they were wrapped up in each other. Seungmin’s hands clutched Jisung’s chest, leaving you certain that there would be little bruises imprinted in the skin despite his neutral face. Jisung had his bag of chips crumpled in one hand, the other digging into Seungmin’s knee. His own expression was not as passive as Seungmin’s, the older beta’s lower lip caught in his teeth and his eyebrows furrowed just the slightest bit.
Next to them, Minho was leaning back onto his hands, looking just as relaxed as Changbin, but his eyes slightly narrowed and his teeth peeking out from between his open lips.
Finally, your gaze turned to Chan. Instead of the same heavy-eyelidded daze as the others, he looked almost contemplative.
After a moment, he stepped forward. “Felix,” he half sighed, “oh, baby, are you slipping into pre-heat already?”
Felix gave no hint that he heard Chan, moving to gnaw at Innie’s neck.
You were a bit uncertain of what to do. As a caretaker, it would make sense for you to step in and try to bring Felix back into himself, at least until he could have more privacy. However, Felix seemed pretty deep into his headspace and you didn’t want to disrupt that when he was so vulnerable, especially since you had only known him for a couple days. Even if Chan, his head alpha, tried to bring him out of this emotional state, it would be jarring.
Choosing the middle road between a harsh awakening and doing nothing, you slowly peeled off your own scent blocker, allowing your scent to fill the room slowly but surely. You peeled just a little corner, in case you had to reapply it quickly. While it was very unlikely, there was the slightest chance that Felix would turn violent. You didn’t force any specific feelings or hormones into your scent, not even calmness or peace. Hopefully, just the presence of it would be enough to bring Felix out of his trance.
Your scent seeped into the room and you saw the exact moment it hit Felix. He froze, stopping his assault on Innie’s neck and pulled back. His eyes were confused and slightly out of it before they cleared and widened. His head whipped towards you. “Noona! Fuck, I’m so sorry. I shouldn’t have done that in front of you. I’m so fucking sorry-”
“Felix!” You interrupted. “It’s okay! I know you just got carried away, and like Channie said, I think you may be entering pre-heat. Are you feeling okay to still go out to dinner? We can cancel it or move it if you want to stay in until after your heat.”
He shook his head, starting to look embarrassed. “No, I’m good to go to dinner. Just got carried away, I guess. Sorry, Innie.”
Jeongin blinked the haze out of his eyes. “It’s fine, Bbokie-hyung.” Despite his words, you saw that his hands were still clutching Felix’s waist like a lifeline.
You reapplied your scent blocker as Chan came over and wrapped his arms around Felix from behind. He laid a gentle kiss on the omega’s head before turning to you.
“Thanks for that. I didn’t want to interfere and interrupt his headspace, so I wasn’t really sure what to do.”
You shook your head ruefully. “Bang Chan, you need to stop thanking me just for doing my job. I’ll get used to being thanked and start expecting it and one of these days you’re going to forget to thank me and I’ll just snap.”
He smiled, dimples on full display. “Well, I’ll just have to thank you every time.”
I.N made a disgusted face, sticking his tongue out and fake gagging. It was obviously for Felix’s amusement, maybe even for Chan, but when he caught you watching him, his eyes widened and his ears darkened. “Ah, sorry, noona. That wasn’t directed at you, I’m also thankful for you, but hyungie was being gross and someone has to let him know. Otherwise, he might continue to be gross.”
You tilted your head at him, still smiling. “Well, I am sure that you’ve done your best to keep him in check, but if he’s still being ‘gross’ after all this time, maybe your methods need some alterations.”
“Ah, no,” Chan chimed in, “his methods would work if it was anyone else, but since he’s my maknae, it really just encourages me to be as ‘gross’ as I can, just so I can see that cute little disgusted face of his.” Chan moved closer to you, beginning to stage whisper. “It’s really mutually beneficial when I’m mushy towards anyone because he likes it but gets to pretend like he doesn’t, and I get to see his reaction. It’s a win-win.” His eyes wrinkled as he smiled at you. “Maybe even a win-win-win if the person I’m being ‘gross’ to also likes it.”
You felt your face heat up before Seungmin saved you from having to respond. He forcefully made his way between Felix and Jeongin, kicking a little more than necessary, though you could tell that he was careful about not actually hurting anyone. “Okay, I’m getting hungry and I’ll lock all of you outside if we miss our dinner reservations. And I’m not going to dinner with Binnie-hyung sitting next to me in a sweaty t-shirt. Let’s go, hurry up.” He started clapping to inspire urgency, still perched precariously halfway in Jeongin’s lap.
Chan nodded reverently, arms still around Felix. “Yes, hyung-nim, we will hurry up. Please take care of your precious dongsaengs as we go back to the dorms. I’m sure you’ll treat us well to dinner.”
Seungmin stared blankly at Chan. “I’m not paying for you, Bang Chan-ah. You’re not even moving like I told you to.”
Chan scooped up Felix, the younger boy giggling, and jogged him over to the door, managing to grab both of their bags without dropping Felix.
Changbin was finally freed from Minho, though he laid there for a few more moments as he stretched out his back. Jisung and Hyunjin held hands at the door as they waited for the others. Seungmin pulled Jeongin up off the couch and you followed.
“Okay.” Chan set down Felix who immediately leaned back in between Hyunjin and Jisung. “The reservation is at eight, so we’re going to go to our dorms, and Y/N back to her hotel room so we can all freshen up. This is a nice-ish restaurant, so please, no dinosaur sex t-shirts or sweatshirts with rabbits flipping people off.”
Changbin grinned as he finally made his way over to the rest of the group. “Hey, the company didn’t even censor mine, let alone telling me to take it off. That shirt is classy as hell. They should be begging me to wear it when I get invited to the Met Gala.”
Seungmin huffed and crossed his arms. “You should not be allowed to wear anything to the Met Gala.”
“You know I meant that he shouldn’t even go-”
“Okay!” Chan interrupted. “Before we’re picking what to wear at the Met Gala in this entirely hypothetical situation, let’s pick out what we’re wearing to dinner tonight. Lino-yah, please control your children.”
Minho tugged Jeongin to his side and reached across Jisung to grab Felix’s hand. Walking the out through the door with them, he called over his shoulder, “These two are mine. Kim Seungmin is yours that I’ve been forced to adopt through this scam of a marriage. As soon as you become a billionaire, I’m taking my kids and half of the money and leaving.” You all trailed out after him as Minho continued his plans for divorce. “We’ll start our own music group. In-ah can change his family name to Lee and we can be Leeracha. Then, Hyunie and Seungmin can become a group, and since they’re both tall, or at least, tall-ish, they can be Treeracha.”
Making your way down and out to the sidewalk, the other members started deciding the other Rachas they could be with the common traits between certain members. At one point, they asked you to judge who seemed the happiest for Gleeracha.
As you got into the car and waved them off as they got into their own, you couldn’t help but think:
I could be every single member of Gleeracha with how happy they make me.
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