Chapter Text
His leather boots struck the snowy ground with speed, yet in a very calculated manner. It wasn't that he was walking with an anxious stride, nor that he would be late—far from it; Kim Seokjin was far too responsible to make such a mistake. Everything was planned and arranged for his own peace of mind and the sake of his work.
That was all; he was simply a responsible, hardworking man.
“Good morning” he said, his lips barely moving, to the guards at the establishment where he worked. They merely bowed to him, as they did almost every day.
HYBE TECH. It was a large, world-renowned company dedicated to the creation and implementation of high-quality technology and the scientific research applied to it. Not only had they established themselves in the market thanks to the creation of truly intelligent AI operating systems, but that was only a small part of how far they wanted to go.
They wanted more; they wanted to go even further.
Seokjin was part of the team tasked with bringing to life one of the company’s greatest ambitions: a powerful device that, for many years, had been thought impossible. A machine capable of confirming the multiverse theory; a device that could allow humanity to travel between the various possible realities of the multiverse. The dark-haired man wasn’t performing a minor task; rather, he was the lead researcher who made it possible to launch the project in the first place, and now he was the one spearheading the creation of the prototype.
The chill didn’t lift as he entered HYBE. The place was just as it always was: the pretty omega receptionists waving with their manicured hands and nails, the occasional one winking at him—a gesture the man completely ignored. The scent of the alphas wafted through the air as he walked to the lab, and he avoided any interaction time and again. He wasn’t the least bit interested, and it was clear on his face; he didn’t understand how they could keep trying after he’d been with the company for years.
He was finally able to let out a sigh of relief the moment he reached his safe haven: the lab. It was nearly empty, which didn’t make sense given that the project demanded a large portion of the company’s time, but he also understood that many of his colleagues—employees—during the cold season preferred to stay at home with their families, and it was the perfect excuse to take a vacation.
He pushed his thoughts aside, simply putting on his lab coat and glasses and walking down the small steps from the large room.
“Good morning, Mr. Kim,” the gentle Jeon said, bowing slightly toward him. “It’s really cold today, isn’t it?”
The words hung in the air as the older man gave a brief nod. He knew what the younger one wanted to do and wasn’t going to fall for his little game, where he knew they’d end up talking about Taehyung, who, by the way, was Seokjin’s brother.
A clearing of the throat was heard in response.
Awkward.
Speaking of the devil. It took only a few minutes before the door was heard opening and closing dramatically.
“Sorry I’m late!” The Kim younger brother’s brown hair was now covered in a thin layer of snow, the scarf around his neck askew from the obvious dash he’d had to make to arrive even slightly early, and his cheeks and nose red from the effort as well. The only thing that worried him was the younger obviously wet hair.
Seokjin simply sighed. This wasn’t new.
“Oh, come on, I am not that late… I think...” he scratched the back of his head, only to ruffle his hair in an attempt to brush the snow off it.
“Then you’re wrong. Exactly fifteen minutes and forty-nine seconds late, and—”
“Shh, shh… It’s okay,” the omega whispered, kissing the older man’s cheek once he was already wearing his lab coat. He saved his words for later, for when there weren’t so many people around.
His brother went straight over to talk to the tattooed guy with black hair, kicking off the same old unbearable daily routine.
The two of them were flirting while he had to interrupt them so they’d do their work properly. He wasn’t going to lie—he also stepped in because it grossed him out so much and he just didn’t want to watch.
Not in a bad way… He just didn’t want to see his brother flirting with that alpha who looked more like a rabbit seeking in an effort to ensure the survival of the specie.
Ugh.
The microscope’s objective lens focused on the brilliant blue stone, searching for any kind of imperfection or crack. He smiled for the first time all day as he verified the object’s perfection and the way his careful handling had managed to preserve the specimen so spectacularly.
The room was already empty; the others had gone to lunch just a few minutes ago while he continued working and jotting things down in the monitoring notebook.
“Are you still here? Seokjin, we’ve been here since eight in the morning, you since seven… You need to eat something, you’re going to pass out.”
Taehyung was right, but that didn’t change the fact that Seokjin still rolled his eyes in annoyance.
“I was just finishing up examining the energy… Besides, you know I like to eat lunch alone.”
“Jin…”
There was that tone again. The tone he hated when people used it with him: it sounded like pity.
He had chosen this life; this career, this struggle. There was nothing to feel sorry about.
“Tae, I’m fine. You should be worried about coming out with wet hair in this cold weather.”
“Pfft, I’m not going to catch a cold,” he dismissed it with a wave of his hand.
Total lie. He knew that in a week he’d be sneezing, begging his brother to cook him some “healing ramen.”
He moved over to his side, touching one of his older brother’s broad shoulders.
“What I do know is that if you keep pushing yourself like this, it won’t be long before you break down. Either your body or your mind.”
Jin looked him in the eyes for just a few seconds before setting the tools he’d been using down on the workbench. He picked up his glasses to put them back on and simply sighed, for what felt like the tenth time that day.
“Alright. After I finish up with the prototype and finally present it, I’ll take a vacation, okay? And I’m going to eat something now.”
The younger Kim flashed his square smile. Jin smiled too, even letting out a small chuckle.
“That sounds really, really good, hyung.”
Seokjin nodded, thinking he could get back to work.
“Actually, I wanted to come tell you if you’d like to come with us after work to a bar… Something quiet, nothing too rowdy!” he hurried to say.
The black-haired man’s eyes didn’t leave the notebook where he continued to jot down the normalcy of the shiny object in front of him.
“Who exactly is ‘us’?”
“Well… It’ll be me, Hobi hyung, Jiminie, and, um… and Jungkook. Or at least that’s who we’d be so far.”
Now the man was nervously fidgeting with his fingers, waiting for his brother’s response.
“We still need to ask the others—”
“No.”
The reply carried a heaviness that even shifted the atmosphere of the room slightly. The younger man’s slightly sweet scent changed, turning into something a bit more bitter. It was sharp, precise.
Just like everything Seokjin represented in everyone’s eyes.
Tae, speechless, could only say what he really thought. “But, Jin hyung, I planned this so you could meet the others. You’re always at work, and when you’re not here, you’re just at home doing even more work.
“Do you want me to come so you can introduce Jungkook to me as your official boyfriend?”
Now the man’s cheeks couldn’t help but turn red, and he let out a small frustrated sound.
“Jungkook isn’t… He isn’t my boyfriend.”
Jin could only wonder to himself if that was even possible.
There was a brief silence before Taehyung spoke again.
“Hyung, look. I really just want you to spend some time with us. I’m sure that if you gave them a chance, you’d see they’re great people. And I’m also pretty sure that if you just opened up a little more to people, you’d realize you won’t lose your status because of it…”
“Taehyung.”
“And you might even find a partner if you’d just stop using those blockers.”
There it was, his Achilles’ heel.
Because apparently his life wasn’t hard enough already, having to raise his brother all by himself, but on top of that, he had been born a damn omega.
The world of work wasn't fair to them. It never had been, and it didn't seem likely to change anytime soon. It didn't matter how many degrees you had or how hard you worked; he could see firsthand just how cruel this industry was to people like him. And that became even more apparent when he considered how many managers at HYBE were omegas.
Exactly: none. Not a single one, in any department. You could even see it right there in the lab. The only two omegas were Taehyung and him, who had spent practically his entire time at the company using scent blockers and whatever else was necessary to hide the secret.
His hands tightened around the notebook and the pencil he was still holding. His expression changed again, now more serious than anything else.
“Last time I checked, I was the older brother, and I know what to do and what not to do with my life.”
The younger Kim didn’t press the issue any further. The topic had become sensitive.
It wasn’t the first time he’d tried to reason with Seokjin, but Seokjin didn’t seem willing to listen.
“Just so you know… Namjoon hyung wasn’t going to go.”
That was finally going to make his temper snap.
“Just go and eat.”
And with that order, Taehyung disappeared from view.
It seemed his life wasn’t hard enough already—having to raise his brother all on his own, being an omega in an extremely complicated work environment—but on top of that, he’d been forced to live side by side with Kim Namjoon.
His other Achilles’ heel.
Just thinking about him made him frown, and the look on his face changed completely.
Namjoon was his nemesis, his biggest problem at the lab, and the one who took the top prize for his hatred. People would think he was exaggerating. The guy wasn’t a bad person; he didn't kick puppies or rob old ladies, nor did he do anything against the law.
It was just that his life seemed to be fucking perfect.
He was surrounded by friends, and, just like him, he had a younger brother named Jimin—a sweet omega who didn’t work in the lab but handled the secretarial duties and sometimes the front desk. The perfect family, one might say.
He’s handsome, and even though it hurt his ego to say it, he had no choice but to admit the obvious: tall, with pecs and biceps that looked like his lab coat would burst at any moment from having to withstand so much power, and sensual dimples that made him want to throw up every time he smiled.
And to top of it all: the man was extremely intelligent.
With a verified high IQ, he was literally the quintessential alpha. Without his help, the prototype wouldn’t even have been built in the first place. It made his blood boil to remember that, for that very reason, he was the co-leader of the company’s biggest project.
But not everything could be perfect, not even for someone like Kim Namjoon.
Despite his great intelligence and his many other good qualities, he was the clumsiest person alive. It was as if sometimes his hands had been swapped with his feet and vice versa.
He’d lost count of how many times he’d broken the microscope lenses, or how many lab tools he’d tripped over, or even the times he’d managed not to break the test tubes—which was stupid, because they weren’t even using them!
Every little thing about Kim Namjoon annoyed him, even his scent of coffee and dark chocolate that sometimes (only sometimes) made his mouth water.
The worst part of it all was that he couldn’t even hate him in peace, because the man was never disrespectful to him. Quite the opposite, he followed orders immediately and, despite his clumsiness, was an essential part of the team.
Thinking about it made him let out a frustrated sound, running his hands over his face with even more frustration.
His little tantrum (completely rational, of course) was interrupted by the sound of the door opening and the heavy footsteps of at least five people entering the room. Just from the sight of them, he could swear his eyes would start twitching with rage.
Oh, great, now the guy had dyed his hair.
And the worst part was that it actually suited him!
He walked over while taking off his robe to hang it in its place.
“Good afternoon—”
“The notes are on the counter.”
Without another word, he left to satisfy the growing hunger in his stomach.
The room fell into complete silence after the eldest of them all had left. Until Namjoon had the courage to break the silence with a soft clear of his throat.
“Well. Let’s continue with the preparations for the device.”
He heard the others whispering their agreement, some speaking and offering their opinions in low voices about Seokjin.
Jin’s brother’s look of discomfort was noticeable. Though more than discomfort, it was a deep and obvious sorrow that you could almost smell in the air. His shoulder was squeezed by the man with the cute dimples, only to be enveloped in a small hug by the youngest alpha in the room.
All he could do was get back to work, just as the boss had ordered.