Life wasn't fair
And sometimes we have to ask questions we don't actually want the answers to.
...
"Jinnie?" It was well into the late afternoon when he returned, the apartment dark and unoccupied despite the fact that he was certain Seokjin should be there. But there was only silence, stark and deafening, and he searched through it, listened for the sound of the other door opening, turned around in anticipation for the appearance of his omega.
Only there was nothing, no sound of soft foot steps or hint of warm, bright vanilla filling the air. A strange turn of events that he hadn't been expecting.
There was no note, nor was there any new text since that morning, when Seokjin had playfully complained that he really should be focusing on the classes he was paying so much for. Realistically, he knew that there was likely some perfectly reasonable explanation as to why his little omega wasn't there. But something had settled into his mind, a hazy fog caused by irrational worry that he couldn't shake. A tingle at the base of his spine that worked it's way upwards, until his entire body felt like a live wire waiting for spark. All it needed was a single source of fuel to ignite into fire works so bright and so spectacular and so ugly that even he didn't want to witness them.
Emotionally over worked and raw, he tried to use the last of his strength to not simply give into the sensation. To stop it before it began to grow and fester, told himself to be calm and released his own pheromones out into the air, a form of self soothing that he'd had to use so many times in the past he was practically a professional at it now.
It should be Seokjin's scent that was calming him. This was how it had started with Jimin. He would return home to find him missing when he should have been there. Would never get a straight answer as to the reasons why. And Jimin's scent hadn't been calming the way Seokjin's was. No, the floral rose would only ever seem to make it worse, causing him to sneeze endlessly and only grow more and more irritable despite how hard his mate tried.
But Seokjin was not Jimin and he had to stop comparing them before he drove himself even further into madness. There was some explanation, and surely his little one would give it willingly when he returned.
Standing beneath a spray of seemingly endless hot water helped to settled his frayed nerves, steam carrying the faintest hint of sweet vanilla. Long minutes were spent with his eyes closed and head tilted back, simply letting it beat down upon him, working the strain out of tense muscles. Came out feeling more alive and less on edge than he had, towel drying his hair and dressing in clothing that actually suited him instead of whatever he blindly grabbed that could be deemed clean enough, despite it matching or looking at all good on him.
Black cargo pants and a black long sleeved shirt that were just loose enough to be comfortable yet tight enough to show off what lie underneath. Seokjin seemed to appreciate when he put effort into his appearance - and maybe that made the omega a little bit superficial. Thinking on it now, Seokjin always seemed especially worried about his own looks, taking care to make sure there was never a single hair out of place and that all of his outfits were well coordinated, right down to the shoes and accessories. He even wore little bits of makeup to cover any unevenness present in his skin and make him appear even more flawless.
Not that he had ever complained about what Jungkook wore - actually, that was a lie. There had been a few times since returning from the hospital when he would spot something he intended to wear and would make gentle suggestions on ways it could be improved. They were subtle, done in such a way that it didn't feel like an insult, although now that he was paying attention, he could see that they were.
