Chapter Text
Taehyung registers the heavy scent of cotton even before he notices Jeongguk sitting next to him on the bed, along with the scent of a beautiful bouquet of flowers in the grinning alpha’s hands.
“For you,” Jeongguk says, leaning to kiss him on the cheek before handing Taehyung the bouquet.
Gobsmacked, Taehyung accepts the flowers with a confused eyebrow raised while trying to whack his brains for reasons why Jeongguk would give it to him. Christmas was days ago and he had already received a gift from him which was the necklace he’s wearing, and their anniversary was a couple months ago and he’s wearing the bracelet that Jeongguk had given him as proof.
Until it dawns on him.
Taehyung sits up straight and shoots his boyfriend an unimpressed look. “What did you do?” he deadpans, causing the alpha’s eyes to widen.
“What do you mean ‘what did I do’ –?” Jeongguk replies, also sitting up straight and meeting Taehyung’s eyes. “Can’t I give you flowers because I love you?”
The omega narrows his eyes at him, but doesn’t say anything more. Settling with smelling the roses and baby’s breath that’s tied neatly together in the fancy brown packaging it came with. Still suspicious but grateful nonetheless for Jeongguk’s thoughtfulness.
“Well thanks,” he replies, watching Jeongguk who still has a confused look on his face. “Is there a reason why you’re giving me flowers out of the blue?”
Jeongguk blinks once, twice before he shakes his head and gives the omega a firm look. “You– you don’t know?” he asks.
Taehyung shrugs as he continues to smell the roses. “No. Should I?” he says.
“Baby–” Jeongguk starts as he adjusts his position on Taehyung’s single bed and continues to stare. “Baby, it’s your birthday today.”
Oh.
“Oh.” Taehyung ends up saying in the end, checking the calendar that’s hanging behind his dorm room door to see that it is, in fact, December thirtieth. His womb escape , as he liked to call it. “Oh, it is.”
“You forgot?” Jeongguk says, tilting his head to the side. The image reminds Taehyung of golden retriever puppies.
The omega chuckles. “I guess I did,” he says, a shy smile beginning to spread across his face as he stares down at the flowers in his hands. A cozy warmth proceeded to blossom inside his chest at the thought that Jeongguk made an effort to make his birthday more special than how it usually is.
“Sorry Bun, I don’t really celebrate birthdays since it’s in between Christmas and New Year, and well, my father–” he trails off, not really needing to expound since Jeongguk knows, like he always does.
Taehyung looks up from the flowers to find his boyfriend with his eyebrows scrunched, and a gleam of determination shining across his irises. It makes the omega shiver due to the ferocity of it as he fiddles with the roses’ petals.
“Well, you’re with me now.” Jeongguk says firmly. “We’re celebrating today.”
Taehyung bites his lower lip. “We don’t need to, Bun.” he says, placing the bouquet of roses on the bedside table and scooting over to give his boyfriend a side hug, perching his chin over the alpha’s shoulder. “I’m happy already.”
“Happy isn’t going to cut it,” the other says, snaking an arm around Taehyung’s waist and kissing the tip of the omega’s nose, right where his mole is, causing the latter to giggle. “I want you ecstatic, or elated. Overjoyed and every other deeper word there is than just happy.”
Giggling, Taehyung lands a kiss on Jeongguk’s cheek. Feeling fuzzy all over since the alpha seems more excited to celebrate his birthday more than Taehyung himself. “Fine,” he hums, shooting the other an awed look. “I’ll try to be happier today.”
Jeongguk snorts. “You don’t have to try, Baby. You will.” he says, standing up and heading into the direction of Taehyung’s study table to grab a marker and some post-it notes. “I’ll make sure of it.”
And Taehyung doesn’t doubt him for one bit. After all, Jeongguk has yet to make him feel less than this amazing wolf that the alpha made him out to be, and he has a feeling that it’s gonna be like that for a while.
Preferably forever, he hoped.
But alas, it’s just the beginning of their relationship and Taehyung knows that he can be a lot to handle, so he can only hope that Jeongguk will stick around regardless of the omega’s… tendencies, as he liked to call it.
An hour, a change of clothes and some powerful cuddles that urged Taehyung to get out of bed later, he and Jeongguk are sitting inside the latter’s car, waiting for the engine to warm up, with Jeongguk behind the wheel and with Taehyung on the passenger side. Bundled up in their winter clothes, surrounded by some pop christmas carol playing on the radio.
Jeongguk turns to look at him with an excited look on his face and pulls out the post-it notes that he was writing on earlier as Taehyung got dressed for the day. He holds up two notes, one in a green color and the other a purple one. “Pick one,” he instructs.
Taehyung plucks the green note from the alpha’s fingers and turns it around to see what it says. “Dog cafe?” he reads out loud, looking up as Jeongguk starts to drive out of their parking lot.
“Dog cafe.” Jeongguk repeats, eyes on the road. “That’s the first destination.”
The omega tries to stifle the smile that was already making its appearance as Jeongguk drives. Already liking where things are going. Already liking this birthday since he gets to spend it with someone like Jeongguk.
Thankfully, the cafe was empty by the time he and Jeongguk got there with just a litter of puppies greeting them at the entrance, their tails wagging delightedly and excited yips echoing inside the shop.
Taehyung immediately falls to his knees to hug the closest puppy to his chest. “Hi cutie,” he mumbles against his fur. The pup replies with a happy bark as it attacks the omega with its loving licks, causing the latter to giggle in content.
He looks up and finds Jeongguk staring at him with a fond look on his face. Again, Taehyung feels fuzzy all over at that.
“Hot chocolate, extra marshmallows?” Jeongguk says, pointing into the direction of the counter.
Taehyung smiles at the alpha widely and nods. “Yes please,” he says, placing the puppy down on the floor and petting the other ones.
“You got it.” the alpha replies, scratching a doberman behind its tall ears before he goes into the counter to place their order while Taehyung stays put to play with the dogs some more.
He always wanted to have a dog. He remembers visiting the park once when he was a young pup when he had to go with his father for a lunch meeting that the elder had there, and seeing a family playing fetch with their dog. His eyes not leaving the view throughout the whole afternoon as he watched the scene longingly through that fancy restaurant’s glass windows.
He asked his father if they could get one after his meeting as they drove back home to the mansion, only for the elder alpha to huff at him disapprovingly and tell him how he’s too irresponsible to take care of one. Taehyung remembers sitting silently throughout the whole car ride, trying not to let his father’s words get to him like always.
“I always wanted a dog,” Taehyung tells Jeongguk a few minutes later, once they’re both seated around the table that’s next to the cafe’s large window. Holding the steaming mug of hot chocolate that the alpha got for him around his fingers, collecting the warmth from it and blowing over the steam.
“Yeah?” Jeongguk asks as he cuts a slice of the strawberry cake that he bought for them to share. “What kind?”
Taehyung hums, thinking about it. “I don’t know.” he shrugs. “Probably something that I can cuddle with in bed.”
“Am I not enough?” the alpha asks teasingly, causing Taehyung to snort amusedly.
“You are, you big pup.” Taehyung says with a roll of his eyes. “But what if you aren’t there?”
What if you eventually leave, he thought.
Jeongguk seems to think otherwise since, “Right,” he says with a cute pout forming on his lips. “I forgot nurses have weird schedules so I can’t cuddle you as much as I like.”
Taehyung's heart flutters at the thought of Jeongguk thinking of a future where they’re both professionals and still miraculously together.
“Right.” he says, trying to tone his giddiness down. “So yeah, a small dog I can cuddle.”
“What about a corgi?” Jeongguk suggests, feeding Taehyung the cake and wiping the corner of the omega’s lips when a bit of cream smudges it. “Fit for a royal such as yourself, my moon.”
Taehyung scoffs at him, but there’s a hint of a blush on his cheeks. “Nah, they’re still too big.” he says. “But I like how you think, peasant.”
Jeongguk snorts. “What about a dachshund?” he asks. “It’s kind of like a pillow.”
“Too long.”
“A french bulldog?”
“They’re cute, but I want something fluffier.” Taehyung says before he takes a sip of his hot chocolate.
“A pomeranian, then.” Jeongguk says.
Taehyung hums as he thinks it through. Think of thick yet soft fur that he can card his fingers through when he’s watching television, and a small body he can easily carry around wherever and smiles.
“That sounds perfect.” Taehyung says. “Yeah, a pomeranian sounds nice.”
Jeongguk nods at him slowly, with a look on his face that seems as though that the alpha is storing that detail for future purposes. “Okay.” he replies.
Taehyung tries to ignore the fact that it sounds more like a promise than a response.
Once their mugs were empty, and Taehyung has chosen a purple post-it note that Jeongguk made him choose from again that reads ‘thrift shopping’ that made the omega squeal delightedly, they make their way towards one of Taehyung’s favorite stores that sold cheap yet branded second hand clothes.
The smell of old fabrics and nostalgia greets Taehyung’s nose as he and Jeongguk enter their second destination, and shelves and shelves of designer clothes that the omega couldn’t wait to get his hands on.
Taehyung pulls Jeongguk inside eagerly and goes through a rack of coats and jackets, pulling out a wooly brown hoodie with bear ears stitched on the hood that made the omega snort. “Imagine this, but as a onesie.” he says, showing the jacket to the alpha. “And a pup– no wait, two pups. Twins, wearing them. How cute!”
Jeongguk shoots him a bunny grin as he surveys the jacket. “Not a bunny onesie for me?” he asks.
And there the alpha goes again, the omega thought. Purposely making his heart constrict in adoration at the prospect of imagining their futures together. Taehyung can’t help but let out the smile this time.
“Maybe as a backup if the bear onesies are in the washer,” he tells the other teasingly as he returns the hoodie back on the rack.
“I’ll take whatever you give me.” Jeongguk says happily, the bunny smile remaining on his face.
Taehyung nearly kisses him senseless but reigns the feeling in, settling with a smile as he heads into the direction of a collection of different tops, ranging from simple long-sleeved dress shirts to loud and fun ones fit for all genders.
Taehyung loves clothes. He loves wearing the suits that his father buys for him to wear on special occasions, loves the vests and slacks he has on his closet, but also, he always wanted to try more than the ones that his father provided for him. Fun ones. Sheer tops, Hawaiian shirts, turtlenecks made of sequin. Heck, he can even try on a dress. Because clothes have no gender, yeah?
But– his father. As much as Taehyung doesn’t care, his father does. And he knows that the moment he walks around campus wearing a skirt to showcase the legs he waxes month after month and rubs his expensive lotion on, his father will hear about it.
So yeah, no. But maybe– Maybe soon. Maybe with Jeongguk?
Maybe.
“See anything you like?” Jeongguk asks, disturbing his thoughts as the alpha goes through a rack of jackets.
I want it all, Taehyung thought unreasonably, but only shrugs at the other in response. “I can’t really wear any of these,” he sulks. Bottom lip jutting out. “But they all look like my type.”
Jeongguk scrunches his eyebrows at that as he goes to stand next to him. “Then get one,” he says encouragingly. Grabbing a sleeveless dress made of gold, red and black sequins. “It’s your birthday. You can wear anything you want. This top looks good.”
Taehyung smirks at him coyly and hugs the alpha around his slim waist. “This top looks good too.” he murmurs under his breath suggestively.
The alpha blushes at that. “Baby,” he whines. Cotton scent mixing with something else that causes the corner of Taehyung’s lips to twist. “Not here.”
“You sure?” he asks, drawing a pattern on the alpha’s chest.
Jeongguk nods firmly. “Yep.” he says. “We still have stuff to do. Maybe tonight?”
Taehyung laughs at the way Jeongguk is wiggling his eyebrows at him comically. “Maybe,” he says. Definitely, he thought.
Jeongguk ends up buying Taehyung his first ever purse. It’s a fake Chanel bag, colored black and silver chains as its sling with the brand’s logo over the button. Looks like the real thing, actually. Taehyung has been to Chanel a handful of times to pick up the clothes that his father had ordered for him and has loitered over to the bags section enough times to memorize what their design looks like, and this bag is an impressive replica.
He almost didn’t buy it because the price was above his budget. Reasonable, since it looks real, but of course Jeongguk just has this talent of making Taehyung feel special– ecstatic and upbeat, and all those words that the alpha said that morning, and insisted he buys it for him as a gift. Saying the roses from earlier was just a taste and that he wants to get this bag for Taehyung.
“Isn’t it too much?” Taehyung asks. Still wary as they head to check out. “I mean, I can get something else, Ggukkie. You don’t have to–”
Jeongguk scoffs at him lightly and squeezes his arms reassuringly. “For you?” he says, eyes and tone soft as his scent. “It’s never too much.”
Taehyung hears the you’re never too much hidden there, too.
Jeongguk makes him pick from the post-it cards again, and Taehyung chooses the green one which reads ‘Snow Angels.’
They cross the street after they exit the shop, leaving their purchase inside Jeongguk’s car and proceeding to walk hand in hand at the park. Buying bungeoppang along the way, before they find themselves in an open area where white is blanketing the ground.
Taehyung feels Jeongguk buzz with excitement next to him, and he can’t help but slowly feel the same. He hasn’t had the chance to make a snow angel before because of the same reason. (Read: his father) and Taehyung has a feeling that his boyfriend knows about this too, if the alpha’s excitement is anything to go by.
“Ready?” Jeongguk asks with a smile that feels warm enough to melt the blues and grays that always clouded the day.
“Ready.” Taehyung replies, sitting down next to him and laying down on the cold snow. Spreading his arms and legs apart repeatedly to make a drawing on their cold canvas.
And really, Taehyung isn’t a fan of the cold. He spent too much time alone as a pup with only his blankets and expensive coats to keep him warm as he watched the world turn white through a looking glass.
But laying on the cold snow with Jeongguk by his side while white flakes traveled under his clothes and with the tips of his noses tinged red, as they spend that idle time doing something as silly as this– as making snow angels, Taehyung couldn't help but feel hot all over. Taehyung couldn’t help but think that even though they’re surrounded by white, Jeongguk can manage to make him see every color and even without the use of his words, Jeongguk has his way of making him feel more.
And it was just the beginning.
They settle on one of the empty park benches later on with their bodies pressed together, leaving no space in between them with the excuse to conserve heat, even when the alpha brought too many hot packs with him. Their fingers are entangled, Taehyung’s legs are over Jeongguk’s thighs and his head is over the alpha’s shoulder. Soothing cotton mixing with sweet strawberry as they watch some young pups have a snowball fight at the playground.
They’re doing another round of twenty questions, and it’s Taehyung’s turn to ask.
“What do you feel about having pups?” the omega asks, looking at the other carefully.
Jeongguk hums, shiny doe eyes watching the pups in front of them. Understandably taking his time to answer since they’re too young to even start thinking of having children, plus they haven’t even been together for that long to start discussing them.
Taehyung begins to regret asking. Thinking, he’s coming in too strong, too much.
But as always, Jeongguk takes him by surprise. “Want them.” he smiles as he looks down at the omega. With you, Taehyung hears underneath it all. “A small team of them to help us take care of that pomeranian you want, and wear those bear or bunny onesies you mentioned earlier.”
Us. Their future. No more birthdays alone. Just them.
Taehyung longs for it. Taehyung wants it.
“Yeah?” he says, nuzzling under the alpha’s chin to get some cotton on his skin. “You want that?”
Jeongguk nods. No hesitation or wariness, eyes holding the promise it shone with earlier. “Of course,” he replies.
And as if he was hesitating, the alpha adds a shy yet bold, “With you.”
Taehyung could think of a million things to respond to that, could think of thousand things he wants to do with the alpha, and a hundred ways to tell him how much he means to him, he starts to feel all the things that Jeongguk promised he’d make him feel– ecstatic, elated, overjoyed and every other synonym he could think of.
Happier.
But the wide smile on his face and the way his heart is fluttering wildly inside his chest makes all the words get tangled up in his tongue and is preventing him from doing as such.
But Taehyung manages to mutter a soft, “Me too.” under his breath.
And he knows it’s enough, he knows Jeongguk understands what he really meant like he always does, if the way the alpha’s grin widened and the way he tightened his hold around the omega at the latter’s simple yet heavy remark was anything to go by.
Taehyung shudders, not because of the cold but because of the feelings inside of him that was filling him up to the brim. He thinks of the future and when he imagines it, Jeongguk is there. Along with their pomeranian, their pups, and so much more that was once a wish, now a goal.
“Thank you for making my womb escape worth it, Bunbun.” he tells the other as cups the alpha’s cheeks together in his palms, making his bunny teeth poke out and Taehyung to giggle.
Jeongguk grins at him. “I’ll make it worth it every year, Baby.” he says.
He promises.
Taehyung has had his doubts and worries, but slowly yet surely, he’s beginning to learn that when it comes to Jeongguk, he shouldn’t.
And sure, it may have taken him a few more bouquets that greeted him as he woke up in the morning on every thirtieth of December, with Yeontan, their pomeranian, licking his cheek to coax him awake, along with their pups jumping on their bed, dressed in their matching bear onesies with Jeongguk next to him to realize it.
But all that matters is that in the end, it’s them.
And in the end, Jeongguk kept the promise he made with his eyes.
Taehyung is ecstatic, elated, overjoyed and happier now more than ever.