TOAO | MW [✔]

Nine.

In the afternoon, Mingyu drove them to Wonwoo's little house to drop off their purchases for Piper so Wonwoo could check on his place and make sure everything was okay. Mingyu was fascinated by the tiny place. Wonwoo's scent was so strong, it was heavenly. Everything inside was religiously organized and equipped with braille labels. The expensive sound system wasn't a surprise to him, he knew Wonwoo loved music and hated silence, so it made sense.

But the true treasure of the place was his omega's nest. It was completely hideous, and he loved it immediately. The canopy was brown with orange polka dots all over it and inside was a mish-mash of brightly colored pillows and blankets that all appeared to be in the ugliest most clashing patterns he'd ever seen. It was like Wonwoow had gathered every ugly, rejected item from every store and used them to fill his nest. It was so endearing.

"I know my nest is...I guess it's ugly, supposedly. I just..." Wonwoo picked up a little pillow that had a fraying edge that the omega played with as he spoke. "...have a thing for unique things. If someone sighted doesn't like it because it's ugly...Well, who better to keep it than me?"

Mingyu watched as his omega protectively hugged the ugly pink and green pillow. Every time he thought he couldn't love Wonwoo more, he was proven wrong. He was so precious and kind, that he showed kindness to these inanimate objects. It made him wonder if Wonwoo gathered these rejected items because he felt rejected by the world for his blindness.

"I love it. It's perfect."

Wonwoo sat his little pillow back in his nest and moved forward into his alpha's arms, letting himself be pulled against Mingyu's body.

"You don't think it's ugly?"

"Oh, it's absolutely hideous, but that's why I love it. How do I explain? It's like you took in a bunch of unwanted things and now they're so dear to you. I guess...it feels like I'm one of those things too."

Wonwoo squeezed him, wondering why his alpha felt unwanted. He knew he had friends in Kihyun and Hyunwoo, as well as his old military friends. But the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he was very much like Wonwoo. He had friends, but no family, and no lover. They were both lone wolves. That thought made him smile. They would just have to make their own little pack.

"You're not unwanted. Not here. I'll always want you, Mingyu. My alpha." Wonwoo pulled away and took Mingyu's hand stepping back and tugging on his hand. "Do you want to come inside?"

"Yes, I would love to come into your nest."

Wonwoo turned and felt his way into his nest, shifting and settling himself comfortably before reaching his hands out toward him. Mingyu climbed inside the small space carefully, trying not to jostle the little piles of pillows and blankets. He sat next to Wonwoo and took a deep breath. The nest was overwhelmingly strong with his omega's fresh green apple scent, and he could feel arousal creeping up his spine again. He needed to get himself under control, but it was impossible. He had bottled up his sexual drives for years, and now he was like a bottle of champagne, once the cork was gone, there was no stopping the flood. He was unquenchable for his Wonwoo.

Mingyu watched as Wonwoo's hands patted over things, and noticed how he seemed to linger on loose threads or fraying edges, and crooked seams. When he found one, he always smiled like it made him happy to find these little imperfections. He remembered how Wonwoo had always used his ugly little squat mug with the chipped lip and crooked handle until it broke, and he remembered him saying he liked unique things.

As he studied him, the way his hands traced over the little tears and things in his nesting items made him think of how the omega had traced the contours of his scars. That was when he realized that the ugliness of his scars wasn't an issue with Wonwoo. His scars were like these loose threads and frayed edges, something that helped him to distinguish one object from the masses. They were his unique quality, not a defect or a deformity to be avoided or shied away from.