Unlike the Others

Chapter 4

Yein helps him translate their dialogue, the younger having already finished his English studies back in high school and being the second-best English speaker he knew of -Mogu has a native level of fluency but he knew the beta was busy with his assignments- so they are able to finish it that night. Wooseok paying for the pizza they order for dinner.

He knows Yein knows something happened that had made him upset but since Wooseok had not run to his nest like last time he didn't make any questions and just kept an eye on him.

Wooseok takes a photo of their scrip and sends it to Jinhyuk, the older replying a few minutes later with a couple of surprised stickers and telling him he should not have done all the work by himself but Wooseok just tells him to not worry about it, he could always take care of next week's.

He stays up late all night working on professor Seokhoon's assignment because it's one he can't half-ass, not if he wants to get a passing grade. Wooseok regrets having not gotten around to it before as the hours pass by and he realizes he will end up struggling to stay awake on his classes.

~🐾~

Wooseok is far too early, the class before English having ended up only 20 minutes into the class because professor Seoham forgot to grab the USB where he stores the material he needs to teach the class properly.

There's, of course, no one inside the classroom. The moment he sits down on his seat he yawns, his eyes prickling with tears that he brushes away before they can escape his eyes. The day has been a little colder than usual but that just makes him more drowsy.

Wooseok lays his head on top of his arms and closes his eyes. He might as well take the chance to take a brief nap, he's sure he will wake up when the classroom becomes louder as his classmates enter.

~🐾~

His dream doesn't make sense, they rarely do. One moment he's strolling in a park with Yein and Minsoo, their conversation nonsense from what he's able to catch, and the other he's dancing in a club with Jungmo pressed against his back forcing a random alpha's stare away from him.

Then he finds himself alone and cold in a dark forest. Wooseok can hear people talking around him but they're so far away he can't make out what they say. The scenario is not a stranger for him, he has had nightmares that start like this many times before and his dream self feels his chest getting heavier and heavier as the voices come closer.

Wooseok feels a whimper starting to form in his chest but before it can crawl up, a warmness envelopes him and with it comes a smell that makes him relax, the tension easing off his body, the voices disappearing.

He curls up on the ground but not because he's scared, on the contrary, its because he doesn't feel like he needs to bolt out the place anymore. Wooseok sniffs the air around him trying to put a name to the comforting smell. It's woody and reminds Wooseok of Sooil but at the same time it's so different, it's more subtle than his friend's scent.

There's a hint of another scent, a citric one that brings him back memories of sitting on the living room of his parent's home as they watch TV together, a blanket around him and his fingers busy peeling a juicy mandarin.

"Wooseok,"

He looks around, the voice that calls his name slightly familiar but he can't put a name to it. His name is called again and this time a hand is placed on his shoulder, Wooseok flinching away from the touch.

Everything is too bright when he opens his eyes so he closes them again, moving his hands towards his face as he sits back. The hand on his shoulder disappears.