Grumpy Alphas need lots of love✔️

4

Once again updating a day early because I won't be able to post tomorrow but I think rather a day early than a day late and keeping people waiting....

Minho growled when he opened the door and was hit with a wave of aggressive pheromones. It was so strong, he barely registered the underlying stench of vomit. His heart dropped when he spotted Chan curled up against the bathtub, his hands tightly fisted in his messy curls, pulling his hair. "Hey, stop that", Minho scolded quietly, dropping to his knees next to the older. Stroking his fingers over the backs of Chan's hands, the dancer hummed: "Hyung, you'll make your headache worse. Deep breaths, hm?" He eventually got Chan to loosen his grip and gently took his hyung's hands in his, squeezing them lightly. "Let's calm down, okay?", Minho tried, studying the leader. He was startled when Chan growled at him. The oldest had never done that and to be honest, Minho was scared. That changed immediately when they made eye contact though. Tears were streaming down Chan's face and the younger realized the growl had been from pain and desperation, not anger though Chan was definitely angry too.

Sighing, Minho wrapped his arm around Chan's shoulders and lifted a corner of the blanket to wipe his hyung's tears. "You're feeling worse, aren't you?", the dancer cooed, glancing at the toilet. Chan nodded defeatedly as he bit his lip to keep from either crying or growling. Comfortingly squeezing the Aussie's shoulder, Minho frowned: "Why are you so angry, hyung?" – "Why does my body hate me so much?", the older forced out between gritted teeth, his voice cracking painfully. 'Maybe because you never allow it to sleep', Minho thought but held his tongue. Feeling Chan's forehead, Minho sighed: "Your body doesn't hate you, hyung. You were just unlucky and yeah, I know that this isn't how you had wanted to spend your day off but you need to stop getting mad at yourself for falling ill. It's entirely human and also out of your control, so getting mad isn't going to make anything better, if anything, it'll make things worse."

Minho sat with Chan for a while but the older didn't get sick again, so Minho eventually flushed the toilet. "You think you're done here?", the dancer asked, smiling when his hyung nodded, "Alright, you wanna brush your teeth, while I go and get you some water?" Though Chan was exhausted, he allowed his dongsaeng to pull him to his feet. Sitting on the closed toilet lid, the leader accepted his toothbrush and tiredly scrubbed at his teeth, while Minho slipped out of the room. He needed to lean against the younger for support when rinsing out his mouth. Easing Chan back down, Minho handed him the water and had him take a few careful sips. While the older was already close to dozing off, Minho gently brushed his sweaty bangs out of his face and felt his forehead, humming: "Let me take your temperature. I have a feeling it's only getting worse." Chan only gave a sleepy hum of acknowledgement but turned his head to allow the other access to his ear. Minho clicked his tongue when the device beeped, the reading pretty high. He studied his hyung for a moment and realized he was still shivery, so taking away his blanket would be a cruel move, especially after the entire pack had scented it.

"Let's get you back to the living room", Minho breathed, wrapping his arm around Chan's waist, "Maybe you wanna lay down in the nest now. It looked really cozy and the boys have been obsessing over making it as comfortable as possible." Getting up on trembling legs, the oldest leant heavily on Minho and relied on the other to keep him from toppling over. Chan's head pounded and he stopped dead in his tracks as his vision faded. Hearing Minho curse, Changbin was by their side in an instant. Supporting their hyung from either side, the two quickly dragged him the last few meters to the living room and made it just seconds before the leader's legs gave out. Chan groaned quietly as Changbin laid him down in the nest in the living room. The omega kept one hand on Chan's shoulder the entire time, so he could feel his presence, using the other hand to motion for Felix. Though he wasn't entirely out, Chan could barely comprehend his situation, flashing hot and breaking into a sweat as the room spun around him. The scent of his pack enveloped him, the only sense of comfort as every fiber of his body burned, his head pounding and eyes stinging.

Chan inhaled sharply, when something cold touched his forehead, bringing back his focus almost immediately. Holding the icepack in place, Felix soothed: "You're okay. Just take a few deep breaths and the dizziness should fade soon." – "Mmmmmh, hurts", the alpha slurred, his eyes still screwed shut. "What hurts, hyung?", Felix frowned as he cupped Chan's flushed cheek. Furrowing his brow, the older tried to express what he was feeling but it was tough. Chan brought his hands up to cradle his head, muttering: "Everything." He drowsily opened his eyes when he heard Minho set down the bucket next to the nest. They made eye contact, the younger promising: "Just in case, you probably won't even need it." Chan wasn't so sure about that. His stomach was still in knots and although he was pretty certain, that he didn't have much in him, he wouldn't want to challenge fate.

With a heavy heart, Felix laid down by Chan's side, lightly holding the icepack in place, so it wouldn't slide off. He gave Jeongin as sad smile, when the maknae cuddled up to Chan's other side and nosed at their hyung's shoulder. None of them had expected they'd be spending a rare day off like this but at least they had Chan with them and the leader wasn't hiding away in his room. Sure, they were taking a risk but it was a risk that Chan himself had taken time and time again. It was just so foreign to see their strong and seemingly invincible leader in such bad shape. It didn't take long for Hyunjin and Jisung to join their mates in the nest, while Minho, Changbin and Seungmin discussed their next steps. With how sick Chan was, there was no way he'd be recovered in time to attend their schedule the following days, so Minho decided to step up and call their manager. The alpha might have stretched the truth a little to the point where their manager was so concerned about contagion, that he promised to arrange for all of the boys to have some more time off to care for their leader and make sure they themselves stayed healthy too.

Changbin and Seungmin watched over their sleeping pack, Seungmin being the first to notice Chan waking up. The leader was panting, terrified eyes meeting Seungmin's as he took a deep breath, the scents of his dongsaengs' grounding him. Seungmin quietly snuck up to the nest, not wanting to wake any of the others. "Hey", he whispered, reaching out to brush his hand against Chan's arm, "You okay?" The alpha gave a small nod, wincing: "Jus' a nightmare. Ugh, my head hurts." – "I'm pretty sure you're dehydrated, hyung", Seungmin hummed, offering the older a hand to help him out of the nest, "Sit with Changbin-hyung for a bit and I'll go fetch you something to drink." Chan stumbled into Changbin's embrace, the omega helping him over to the couch, where they sat down together. The oldest was resting his head on Changbin's shoulder, while the rapper rubbed his back. When Seungmin returned, he was carrying a steaming cup and smiled: "It's just some broth, so hopefully your tummy will accept it well. There's no rush, just sip it slowly and see how you feel." Chan nodded sleepily before lifting the cup to his lips.

Feeling cold now that he wasn't all cuddled up with his mates, Chan wrapped his fingers around the cup to warm them and closed his eyes. The broth seemed to settle his stomach, at least a little, the angry churning easing up. "Chan, you awake?", Minho asked carefully. The older hummed in confirmation, though his eyes remained shut. Crouching down in front of the leader, Minho smiled: "I just spoke to our manager." That announcement suddenly had Chan wide awake, the realization that he'd need time off of work to recover only hitting now. "Relax", the dancer chuckled, "We got our break extended. All of us have a few more days and we'll see how you're feeling by then and if you need more time. For now, the rest of us will be staying with you. Oh, you're drinking something. That's good! How does your stomach feel?" Chan's shoulders relaxed and he shrugged: "Think the broth's settling my stomach. It still feels meh, but I don't think I need to be sick. Not yet, at least."

With four of the members still sleeping comfortably in their nest, Minho soon turned on the TV again. Keeping the volume low, they watched "Big Hero 6". Chan rested against Changbin's side, slowly nibbling the crackers Minho had brought him while Seungmin curled up next to him. The beta was rarely so openly affectionate but Chan definitely enjoyed it when he was, tangling his fingers in the younger's hair. His heart fluttered when Seungmin started to purr quietly. It was something that had only happened on a couple of occasions because it meant the boy let his guard down completely, so Chan smiled as he finished his cracker and kept indulging the beta with headpats.