The Rules of Courting | nj

Nine

Water dripped down Seokjin's face, some of it pouring from the showerhead above him, and some of it leaking out of his eyes as he scrubbed at his neck, removing Namjoon's scent from himself. His inner wolf was cursing at him for getting rid of his alpha's scent, but it was necessary in order to protect himself and Namjoon.

Once he was sure the cinnamon was no longer permeating off of him, his skin rubbed red from his furious scrubbing, he leaned his head against the wall, shoulders shaking as he began to cry harder with the pain beginning to burn in his chest.

He'd always seen how omegas would act when a scenting wore off, how pouty Jimin would get if Yoongi's sandalwood started to disappear from him before he got the chance to rescent him, and he'd read about the effect a forceful cleansing of scent could be. But he'd never expected to be this affected by it. He wanted nothing more than to run out of house and back into Namjoon's arms so his alpha could douse him in cinnamon again, but he knew that risking it a second time wouldn't end as nicely.

He stayed under the stream of water until the burning in his chest started to subside, at which point he turned the shower off and made his way to his room on shaky legs. He rummaged through his clothes, pulling on a pair of underwear and one of the many hoodies he had stolen from Namjoon. He brought the collar up to his nose, the cinnamon set into the fabric soothing the pain even more, but also making his inner wolf yearn for his alpha even more. Instead of giving in and going back to Namjoon, he forced himself to climb into his bed, curling up under his blankets and breathing in the scent of Namjoon until he finally fell asleep.

~*~

"Why are we here again?" Namjoon asked Jungkook who had dragged him to an area of the forest he had not yet been to.

"I'm going to help you learn how to shift." Jungkook answered.

"Uh huh~" Namjoon glanced over at the two omegas perched on a rock just a few feet away. "And why are they here?"

Taehyung shrugged. "Taking a sneak peek before we buy."

Namjoon furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, prompting Seokjin to speak up. "We gotta see what you're offering before we decide if we want it."

"Offering, what-" He turned back to Jungkook, eyes widening when he noticed that the younger alpha had stripped completely naked. "I can see your penis!" This was the first thing Namjoon blurted out as he averted his gaze.

"I'm not exactly a fan of ruining my clothes whenever I feel like shifting." Jungkook said casually, as if he weren't currently letting it all hang out. "And unless you are, I suggest you get to stripping too."

Namjoon bit his lip nervously, slowly bring his hands up to unbutton his shirt. He glanced over at Seokjin, who was watching with his head propped on his hand. "Just warning you, I don't look like him."

Seokjin scoffed. "If I wanted Jungkook, I would have already challenged and beaten Taehyung for him." The omega looked over at his friend, who was practically drooling as he stared hungrily at the young alpha. "Tae~" Seokjin said, slightly annoyed.

"I cannot wait to feel his knot." Taehyung said as if in a trance, probably not even aware that he was saying it out loud.

"Of course, you can't." Seokjin rolled his eyes slightly, elbowing Taehyung to knock him out of it.

Taehyung glared at the older omega. "In just a few seconds, you'll be thinking the exact same thing about Namjoon."

"Sure, I will~" Seokjin responded, turning to look at Namjoon again, inhaling sharply as he saw the alpha's nude body for the first time.

Sure enough, he didn't look anything like Jungkook. While the younger alpha was bulky, Namjoon's muscles were much leaner and more subtle. Seokjin couldn't take his eyes off the gentle definition as he dragged his gaze over the male, travelling downward until they landed on-

Seokjin squeezed his thighs together as he felt a small amount of slick begin to trickle out of him. Taehyung giggled next to him, causing him to glare at the younger omega. "Told ya~" Taehyung teased him, dodging when Seokjin tried to smack him in retaliation.

After Namjoon's many failed attempts to shift, he and Jungkook decided to call it a day. He quickly dressed himself again and went to get Seokjin, their hands automatically intertwining as they walked through the forest. "Don't beat yourself up." Seokjin assured Namjoon, rubbing his thumb over the alpha's hand. "Shifting can be really difficult to learn, especially for someone who didn't grow up around here."

"I know..." Namjoon mumbled as they reached their clearing, sitting down and pulling Seokjin with him. "I just feel like I wouldn't be good pack alpha material if I can't even do something so basic as shifting."

"Okay, first of all," Seokjin began, getting comfortable on Namjoon's lap, bringing his hand to the back of his neck to gently run his fingers through the alpha's hair. "Shifting is not basic. If it were, then everyone would do it all the time. Second of all, you are great pack alpha material. I see it, Yoongi sees it, even some of the council members see it."

Namjoon looked at the omega in surprise. "Really?"

Seokjin nodded with a soft smile. "I overheard a meeting earlier-"

"You mean you eavesdropped?" Namjoon asked with a knowing look.

"I overheard," Seokjin retorted, but from the smirk on his face, Namjoon's question was answered, "them saying that while you still have a lot to learn, you're already making great progress, and that they would have no objections if we were to get betrothed tomorrow."

"Interesting~" Namjoon hummed as Seokjin moved his hand to the side of his neck, thumb brushing along his scent gland. "And would you have any objections to it?"

Seokjin's eyes widened slightly in surprise. "Kim Namjoon, are you officially asking me to enter a betrothal with you?"

"Well that depends." Namjoon said, wrapping his arms around Seokjin's waist as the omega asked him what that meant. "If you were to say yes, then yes I am asking you to enter a betrothal. If you were to say no, then this is just a hypothetical."

Seokjin giggled, leaning in until their foreheads were touching. "I would love to be betrothed to you." He whispered, lips brushing against Namjoon's with every word.

"So, you would be okay with us going to ask your grandfather for his blessing tomorrow?" Namjoon asked just as quietly, earning a nod from Seokjin.

"I would be more than okay with that." Seokjin giggled again, closing the distance between them and kissing Namjoon with every ounce of passion he could muster.