❖ take care of me anyway // yoon jeonghan
jeonghan x gn!reader, 1.7k+ words
tags: office worker!jeonghan not rlly relevant to the plot tho, sick fic, fluff, established relationship
warnings: brief fever-induced hallucinations ig?? but theyre rlly cute, pet names, reader has a cold
notes: im sick. like, 'i have a cold' sick. and i also have another sick fic planned so uhh yeah im a little Unwell in the head too
There are ten minutes left of Jeonghan’s lunch break when you finally call him.
“Hello, my darling,” he says, his tone both parts dry and amused. “How are you?”
“Sick,” you reply, and even just that word sounds horribly bunged up. “But you knew that already, didn’t you? You called in sick for me.”
Jeonghan just hums, smiling a little as he adjusts the phone against his ear, walking down the street back to his company building. “Maybe I did.”
You don’t say anything for a moment, and he can almost hear you pouting on the other end of the line. There’s a rustling sound as you adjust yourself in bed, and he sighs.
“How sick are you?”
“Very,” you say, miserably, and then give a series of harsh, wet coughs that has him wincing. “Very sick. I only just woke up, but my head is just…” You don’t finish your sentence. Just make a very pained sound like a wounded puppy.
Jeonghan chuckles. “Gee, I wonder how you managed to get so sick. It’s not like walking home in the pouring rain without a coat makes you ill, isn’t it?”
You whine at that, upset. “Han, I told you, I was gonna call you but my phone was dead. I had no choice! Wanted to get home fast to see you,” you add in a mumble, sounding dejected.
He smiles at that. “It wasn’t like I was going anywhere, though,” he points out. “I was all comfortably squished on the couch. I wasn’t gonna disappear any time soon. You could’ve taken your time. Waited for the rain to pass.”
“Yeah, but still,” you huff petulantly, then sniff. “Can you make soup when you get back home?” you ask after a beat, and sniffle again. “And also buy some tissues? And meds? And give me cuddles?”
Jeonghan chuckles at how pitiful you sound, resisting the urge to coo. “No.”
“What?” You’re whining again, and you sound all bunged up but Jeonghan just smiles, amused. “But your darling Y/N is currently suffering the worst cold in the entire world.”
“But alas, I think my darling Y/N is the sole person to blame for this cold,” Jeonghan says, lips twitching upwards. “Don't you think so?”
“Come take care of me anyway.”
“No.”
You make a noise of discontent, sheets rustling as you shift around in bed again. “Hmph. Worst boyfriend ever. I’m breaking up with you.”
That makes him laugh, the stunned sound being pulled out of him by your deadpan tone, and he grins to himself out on the street, rounding the corner until his company building is in sight. “Whatever you say,” he singsongs. “I’ll see later, okay?”
“Whatever. Bye.” A pause. “Have a nice day.”
Jeonghan smiles as you hang up, looking fondly down at your contact name. He’s standing in front of the company entrance, now, and he has three minutes of his break left. Just enough time to get into the elevator and up to his office.
He pockets his phone, turns on his heel and traipses off to find the nearest pharmacy.
───────────── 🧂
You’ve been drifting in and out of sleep the entire day, constantly stuck in that drowsy, so-sick-that-nothing-feels-real state, and you’ve hallucinated Jeonghan coming home a total of thirteen times in the past five hours.
At least, you think it’s been five hours.
Maybe it’s been less than that.
Whatever. Time is weird.
The point is, your mind is all fuzzy and everything feels like it’s floating, so when someone who looks an awful lot like Jeonghan comes into the room, you just groan. Hallucination Jeonghan #14 has come to pay you a visit, it seems, so you just frown and give him the response that you’ve given all his other clones.
“Go away. Stop trying to sell me fish.”
Hallucination Jeonghan #14 makes a confused noise at that, walking closer to your bed, leaning over to adjust your pillows and pull you up into a more upright position.
“I don’t want your fish,” you say, just in case he didn’t hear you the first time. “Stop it.”
That makes the hallucination chuckle, and his hand comes up to your forehead.
Cold. Huh. None of the other hallucinations touched you before.
His hand drops from your forehead, swiping at the soft skin under your eyes gently, and his fingers are blessedly cool against your skin. You hadn’t realised how much you were burning up before.
“You’re really, really sick,” Hallucination Jeonghan #14 murmurs, and he sounds so concerned, before pulling out a bottle of water from one of the plastic bags he’s holding. Woah, you hadn’t even realised he was holding them. “Here, darling. Drink.”
You obediently take a sip once he uncaps the lid for you, before making small noises of distress when some of it spills down your shirt. Hallucination Jeonghan #14 (wow was it a mouthful to say, even in your head) just hushes you gently, dabbing at it with tissues that he’d procured from the plastic bags.
“It’s okay,” he says softly, and his hands take yours, clasping them around the bottle. Once you’re holding it, he gets up, and for a horrible moment, you think this hallucination is going to leave again. You kind of like this one.
“Where’re you going?” you ask, but it comes out as more of a slur of vowels. You’re not sure he understood a word.
“Drink up,” is all he says. He fishes out a packet of pills from the bag (it’s like a magic bag, you think blearily. It seems to have everything inside it). “Have these as well, okay? I’ll go make that soup you wanted.”
You nod, blinking. Dutifully, you sip the water that the hallucination has left you, because really this was one of the most gentle, doting, Jeonghan-like Hallucination Jeonghan and it kind of feels like he really does have your best interests at heart.
Unlike the other Hallucination Jeonghans, who just wanted to sell you fish. This one really seemed to care about your well-being.
You blink again, slowly.
Oh.
By the time Jeonghan comes back with a gently steaming bowl of chicken soup on a tray with a mug of tea, you're more lucid than before, pouting at him as he comes closer, having remembered his last words before you’d hung up the phone.
“You said you weren’t going to take care of me.”
Jeonghan doesn’t say anything, setting the tray on the bedside table, before sitting down on the edge of your bed, wordlessly picking up the bowl and spoonfeeding you some soup. You open your mouth easily, and he hums in approval with a smile.
“What kind of boyfriend would I be if I let my darling be sick all alone, hm?” he says. “I can’t do that. Especially if you’re also seeing hallucinations of me who are trying to sell you fish.”
He continues feeding you soup in tiny sips, and the entire situation feels weirdly vulnerable, with you propped up on pillows and Jeonghan making small noises of approval every time you successfully swallow a spoonful. Like you’re a little baby bird, or something.
But he smiles so lovingly at you the entire time, so it’s kind of hard to feel too embarrassed.
“Well done,” Jeonghan murmurs, once you’ve finished half of the bowl. Your boyfriend is affectionate, almost overbearingly so at times, always poking you in the side or pinching your cheeks or tweaking your nose, but the softness with which he treats you right now is a whole other level of affection entirely.
Jeonghan cares deeply for you. You know that. You’ve never doubted how much he loves you, and he never gives you reason to doubt it. But still, when he smooths down your hair and strokes the back of your hand and gazes at you so gently, it makes you realise yet again that oh God, he loves you.
“We’re going to get you to finish the rest of the soup in a minute,” he says, reaching down towards the plastic bag at his feet, “but first. I wanted you to have this.”
Out of the bag, he pulls out…
A fluffy bunny plushie.
You blink, tilting your head, sniffing in confusion and also to try and unblock your bunged up nose. “What?”
“Say hi to Jjongie,” Jeonghan says. “He came up to me when I was buying your soup, and I couldn’t not bring him home.” The bunny’s pink ears flop adorably into its eyes as he holds out the soft toy to you. It even has a cream coloured ribbon around its neck. “He’s gonna keep you company whenever I can’t be here for you.”
“Oh,” you say softly, taking Jjongie from him with a smile. You rub your thumb over the soft fur of the bunny’s cheek. “He’s adorable.”
Jeonghan beams, proud. “Of course he is. He’s a me-substitute.”
You look up at him, smiling. “Han, I—” You can’t finish your sentence, too choked up. Literally. You suddenly start coughing, hand coming up to cover your mouth, and Jeonghan rushes forward with the mug of tea and an opened box of tissues that he suddenly procured out of nowhere.
“Hey, it’s okay, no need to cry over it,” he says teasingly as you glare at him, eyes tearing up from how hard you’re coughing. You accept the tissues and, when he pushes the tea insistently in you direction, you take the mug too.
“Yeah, yeah.” You blow your nose with one hand and then drink the tea, noting with a smile the subtle notes of honey in it. “Thank you,” you add, softly, looking down at Jjongie in your lap. Jeonghan really has gone out of his way for you.
Jeonghan just shakes his head, picking up the soup bowl again. “Thank me once you get better,” he says. “You can take care of me after. I’ll probably be catching your illness from looking after you.”
You grin, blowing your nose again, and even you can’t miss the way that Jeonghan watches you, eyes devastatingly fond.
“Yeah, but you’re gonna look after me anyways, aren’t you?”
Jeonghan grins, unashamedly bright. He taps the spoon against your lips, smiling wider when you sip the soup, the mug of tea in your hands, Jjongie the bunny in your lap.
“Duh. I love you too much not to.”
fics tags: @jeonginssa @weird-bookworm @minhui896 @bunnyiix @slytherinshua @haowrld @belladaises @moonlitskiiies @mirxzii @zozojella @kawennote09 @thedensworld @a-wandering-stay @abibliolife @doublasting @wonranghaeee @icyminghao @sweet-like-caramel @your-yxnnie @evasaysstuff @odxrilove @kyeomyun @crackedpumpkin @jeonride @kellesvt @butiluvu @sakufilms @eightlightstar @onlyyjeonghan @aaniag @amxlia-stars @raevyng @isabellah29
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Poison (Part 3/4)
Pairing: Alpha!Bokuto Koutarou x Beta!Reader
Summary: You loved love, but it wasn’t made for you… but maybe a certain Alpha could change your mind
Word Count: 6.4k
AU: Omegaverse
Part 1 Part 2
7am
”Take me to work with you again!” Ami pounced on you as soon as your alarm went off.
For the second day in a row.
”Amiiii,” you groaned, face down into your pillow, “Get off!” You threw an arm behind you to try and push her off but she easily caught it. “Why do you want to go again anyway,” you grumbled into your pillow.
”Because I want to watch all the hot alphas practice again!” She chirped. “It’s not fair you get to hog them to yourself!”
”I’m not hogging anyone! They’re my coworkers!” You yelled into the pillow, “Now will you get off!”
”Only if I can come!”
You sighed, blinking the sleepy blurriness from your eyes. “They’re doing weight training in the weight room today. I’m gonna be in my office organizing schedules and in meetings all day. You’re gonna be bored.”
”I won’t be bored!”
* * * *
“Im boreeeeed,” Ami whined, sinking into the chair she was in, almost falling off of it.
”That’s what I tried to tell you,” you all but growled while typing up a list of repairs that need to take place in the gym into a spreadsheet.
”I thought I’d be able to hang out with the Alphas.”
You rolled your eyes, stopping your typing momentarily, “Yeah cause that makes sense. The manager is gonna be hiding away in her office all day while her sister is ogling the Alphas while they’re supposed to be working. Makes perfect sense!” You scoffed.
She only grumbled something under her breath before climbing to her feet and dragging them over to your bookshelf.
Your office was so boring, she had thought.
At home your house was so colorful and loud in a way that was so aesthetically pleasing and thought out but here you had boring plain walls, with a boring plain desk, and boring plain chairs.
Honestly how Bokuto found any interest in you at all when this was how you presented yourself to the world was beyond her.
She pouted staring at the book case, “Even your books are boring— where’s the manga?”
”At home. Where you should’ve stayed.”
”What do you want to do after work today? What’s cool to do around here?”
”I’m five seconds away from kicking you out.”
”Alright fine, I’ll look for a fun place we can go eat at after— maybe we can catch a movie too!”
You exhaled a sharp breath through your nose and stood up, your seat sliding out from under you.
You marched your way towards your sister and grabbed her upper arm, “I know this is a little vacation for you,” you dragged her to the door of your office, “But I have work to do.”
You swung the door open, about to toss her out when you came face to chest with Bokuto.
You looked up at your co-worker who had a fist poised that was ready to knock on your door.
”Bokuto-san?” You furrowed your brow, “We don’t have any scheduled meetings right now, shouldn’t you be in the weight room?” You asked, grip slackening on your sisters arm.
He grinned widely as usual, “Coach called lunch!”
”Right, so,” Ami started, pulling her arm from your grasp, “I need to use the restroom! Bye!” She chirped, scampering down the hallway.
You rolled your eyes at your sister— you were sure she thought she was being little miss matchmaker again like she was back in high school.
Well that wouldn’t work this time— you were determined it wouldn’t. In high school she knew all the Alphas and had each one of them wrapped around her finger but here you were the one in charge. If she thought leaving you alone with a coworker that you saw almost every day and have spent the last two years learning everything about was going to force you two to date, then she had another thing coming.
Besides… it simply wouldn’t be professional.
You shook your head slightly, shaking the thought of murdering your sister from your mind, “Anyway— what can I help you with Bokuto-san?”
”I brought something for you!” He exclaimed, holding a bag up.
Right.
This again.
”Bokuto-san I don’t know how else to explain it to you— is that mille fueille?”
Your eyes nearly widened to the size of dinner plates at the sight of the cake Bokuto pulled out of the bag in a clear cake container.
Bokuto grinned at the sound of your sudden excitement.
“It is! I made it for you!”
In reality Bokuto’s sisters had mostly made the cake while Bokuto ranted about everything Ami had told him about you to them. A similar routine as they had made every bento that Bokuto had given you to help their poor dense brother out while convincing him that he was truly the chef… or baker in this case.
You continued to stare at the cake, mouth already starting to water as you partially registered Bokuto’s words, “But uh— how— how’d you know this is my favorite?” You asked, still distracted by the cake. You reached out to grab the container.
“Intuition!” He declared proudly.
It was the first dessert on the list Ami gave him.
“I can have the whole thing?” You asked in wonder.
”Of course! It’s for you! I also got you something else.”
You looked up as Bokuto rifled through the bag and pulled something out for you, presenting them to you as he had with the cake.
”What are these?” You asked, picking up the fabric in his hands. You unfolded it, “Kneepads?”
”I got you a matching pair to mine! They’re extra long just like my kneepads!”
And suddenly multiple things hit you at once like a bag of bricks over the head.
You took in a shaky breath as an intense heat filled up your face and you just knew every drop of blood in your body decided to travel to your head.
You nervously cleared your throat, no longer able to look Bokuto in the eye, “And— and what exactly would I need kneepads for?”
“For your volleyball games!”
”…Right.”
You were going to wring Ami’s fucking neck.
But another thought overshadowed your desire to kill your sister in that moment.
Bokuto Kotarou was courting you.
You stared at the items that you held.
Your favorite cake that he made for you. A pair of matching kneepads for your volleyball games.
Bokuto gave you these.
An Alpha gave you these because he was interested in a relationship with you, a Beta.
And if that wasn’t enough, “I was told that I should finally come out and say it,” he sucked in a large breath of air, “I have been courting you for nine months now Miss Manager, I would like to take you out on a date.”
Your knees felt weak.
”Beta-chan?” Bokuto asked you curiously as you had suddenly gone so quiet, suddenly a little nervous now for your rejection even though Ami said there was no way you’d turn him down.
Your heart thundered in your chest as you slowly looked up from the gifts and at Bokuto.
It was like you were seeing him for the first time.
And you could practically see animated hearts floating around his head as an overwhelming anxiety came over you that you had never experienced in his presence before.
‘No, no, no, no, this is so fucking bad. I can’t pursue a relationship with him— he’s my coworker. And he’s an Alpha, we’re both simply incompatible. It would never work— I’m gonna fucking kill Ami when I see her- okay well maybe one date wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, Bokuto’s always been so sweet—‘
”Thank you for the gifts!” You suddenly shouted before slamming the door in his face.
Your back hit the door and you slowly slid down it in despair.
“You’re welcome Miss Manager!” You heard him cheer from the other side, clearly not hurt in the slightest at having the door slammed in his face. “I’ll ask you out again tomorrow!” He added, clearly not dissuaded as you technically didn’t reject him and you did accept his gifts.
‘Why do I feel like I’m back in high school all of a sudden!?’ You cried in your head.
But this was the reality of the situation.
Bokuto was courting you.
And you suddenly had a crush.
You were pushed forward as Ami opened the door on you.
”What are you doing down there?” She asked, peering down at you from around the door, “Where’d Bokuto go—ah!”
”You bitch!” You shrieked, yanking on her leg and knocking her out from under herself before pinning her to the ground, “You’re playing matchmaker again! I told you to stop interfering with my love life!”
Ami managed to get you off balance, rolling you over and pinning you instead, “You needed the interference!” She yelled, “And I told you he was courting you! He just needed a push in the right direction!”
”And what am I supposed to do now!? It’s not like I can actually go out with him!”
”What? Why not?” She whined.
“I work with him, that’s why!”
”Yeah, I looked into that and there isn’t a rule saying you two can’t date.”
”Wha— Yeah, well—“ you spluttered, “Just— stay out of my love life!— ah!” You yelped as your Apple Watch buzzed. Your eyes widened, “Get off! I have a meeting starting!” You managed to shove her off and scramble back into your office.
* * * *
Ami knew you were pissed when you refused to talk to her for the rest of the day— even when she was purposefully being annoying.
Hours upon hours of meetings had passed, hours of scheduling, hours of calling repair men and whoever the fuck else you needed to call… Ami lost track after falling asleep on your office floor.
And then Ami knew you were really pissed when you still didn’t talk on the way home.
In fact, you didn’t address her properly until you reached your house.
”Alright,” you scoffed the second the front door slammed closed. You turned to look at her, throwing your briefcase to the ground, “What did you tell him?”
She only grinned, her little canines poking out, “Mille fuille is your favorite isn’t it~” she lilted.
”Okay so you told him my favorite dessert and that I play volleyball. What else?” You crossed your arms.
She tilted her head as if to ponder what it was, before she snapped her fingers, “I told him you have a stripper pole.”
”HAH!?” you shrieked, “You really told him that!?
”I did!” She chirped, “Along with a buncha other shit about you. I made sure that he got a full comprehensive view of you and I gave him pointers on how to court a Beta. And see how much better he did with my meddling!” She cheered.
You shook your head in exasperation, “Oh this can’t be happening.”
”But it is!” She exclaimed, jumping onto your back. “Isn’t that exciting! True love!”
You pushed her off, quickly spinning around and grasping her shoulders, “Okay, um,” you stammered, trying to organize the tornado of thoughts violently flying around your head, “Bokuto like— he actually likes me?”
”Duh.”
”No but like— he like likes me? Bokuto, an Alpha, not just any kind of Alpha but like top tier Alpha wants to date me? A Beta.”
Ami shrugged, “I’m just as shocked as you are.”
”Okay but why?”
”Oh right!” She suddenly slapped you.
You held your cheek, “What was that for!?”
”For not telling me a fucking Alpha scented you.”
”Huh?” You stared at her in utter confusion until it dawned on you. Last seasons final game. “Oh that? That was nothing.”
”Clearly not because the guys had an emotional hard on for you for nearly a year— and probably a physical one to if you think about it.”
”Shut up,” you shrieked, your face flushing, “Stop talking about Bokuto having a hard on!”
”Ohohoh,” Ami wiggled her eyebrows at you, “Does that make you embarrassed~” she teased, “You know both his stamina and power is at a 5?”
”Of course I know that, why do you know that?”
”I looked him up of course! Had to see what my baby sister was getting into! Or I guess who would be getting into her~” she wiggled her eyebrows again.
”Okay, stop it! That’s not funny!” You held your face which was now burning to the touch with your furious blush. “He’s really liked me since then?”
”Yup!”
”Oh God,” you started pacing back and forth again, “He probably thinks I’m an idiot!”
”Actually out of the two of you, he’s remarkably the idiot.”
”What do you mean?” You stopped your pacing to look at her, “I know he’s not exactly the brightest but I feel like with something like this—“
”No, he’s an idiot, trust me,” she said, “I don’t think I’ve ever met an Alpha so blindly loyal to someone without being in a relationship first. I gotta say, I’m a little jealous sis. That man is in deep.”
”You’re lying— I would have noticed—“
”Hellooo, anyone home?” She knocked on your head, “Of course you haven’t— he’s been courting you like you were an Omega. See, he’s sweet, but that man is stupid. But don’t worry about that, the dumb one’s are usually the best in bed.”
”No. This is ridiculous,” you shook your head, “I can’t possibly go out with Bokuto Koutarou— it’s Bokuto— professional athlete Bokuto— 6 foot 2 Bokuto… Alpha Bokuto…” you trailed off in a daze before rapidly shaking your head from that train of thought, “No it’s not happening.”
”Why nottttt,” she whined.
”Because it just can’t.” You said, “Now, I’m gonna take a long hot bath and when I come out we are putting all of that to rest and never speaking about Bokuto again, okay?”
Ami lifted a brow, staring at you unconvincingly. She knew her sister and she knew this subject would be beating a dead horse by the end of the night.
”Sure. Whatever you say~”
* * * *
You did well. You were proud of yourself.
You had managed to go the entire night without talking about the man that hadn’t left your mind.
But God, was that difficult.
You liked Bokuto. He was good energy to have around at work and he was always so sweet and friendly with everyone. The fans loved him for more than just his skills just because his personality was larger than life.
The man was truly a star.
But holy shit… he was a star that just so happened to want to take you out on a date.
You tossed and turned in bed that night. You stayed up for a while watching your favorite romance movies with Ami all the while refusing to engage with her and her teasing.
But now you couldn’t sleep.
Not when you pictured yourself in the lead role from your favorite movie and Bokuto as the love interest, determinedly pursuing her because he was so in love.
You sat up in bed. Your hair was a mess from all the tossing and turning and Mochi had abandoned you for the floor a while ago.
You quickly found yourself scrambling out of bed, grabbing your cat, and stumbling down the stairs to the guest room.
Quietly sneaking in and avoiding anything you could make out in the night, you found yourself in front of Ami’s sleeping form.
”Ami.” You whispered, “Ami— Ami— Hey!”
Ami shot up in a fright, spooking Mochi in your arms who clawed her way out of your hold, forcing you to drop her.
You frowned, staring at the thin, red scratches on your hand, “Ow…”
”What are you doing!” Ami panted, turning the night table lamp on. “You look crazy.” She said breathlessly, eyeing your wild hair and frantic look in your eyes.
”So uh—“ you started twiddling your fingers, hunched over your sister, “What has Bokuto said about me…?” You asked awkwardly, cursing yourself for sounding so high school.
A devious little grin grew on Ami’s face and she tugged you onto the bed.
”So you do want to date him!”
”I’m not saying that!” You yelped, “I just— I wanna know what he’s been saying.” You blushed. “I don’t know if you’ve noticed but guys don’t typically get crushes on me.”
Ami giggled such a girlish and excited laugh, you really did think for a minute that you’d been transported back to high school. “Well he seems to think you smell really good,” she giggled again as you blushed.
”If I knew he was scenting my shit I would’ve made sure to do laundry more often,” you groaned, “Or at least worn more perfume.”
”Oh don’t be silly, Alphas are more interested in natural scents anyway. Besides he’s been trying to decode yours for like ever it sounds like.”
”Decode?”
”Yeah dummy. He thinks there’s more to you that he doesn’t know about. Whyever he would think that is beyond me,” she remarked sarcastically, “You’re just oh so transparent with your coworkers.” She glared.
”I’m the perfect amount of transparent, thank you very much,” you crossed your arms.
”You don’t even go to team parties,” she deadpanned, “Have they even seen you outside of your pantsuits and tracksuits?”
”No, and they don’t need to. I have an entire team of Alphas that respect me.”
”Oh give me a break,” she rolled her eyes, “They’re not gonna lose respect for you by seeing you in a nice dress at a work party and letting your hair down a bit— and I mean that literally and figuratively— they haven’t even seen you with your hair down for goodness sakes.”
”I know that,” you huffed.
”Then what are you so afraid of!” She exclaimed in exasperation.
You pouted, beginning to pick at your nail, murmuring something under your breath.
”What?” She asked with a confused expression, straining to hear you.
”It’s just—“ you stopped yourself, rubbing your suddenly clammy hands on your pajama pants, “Every time I try to be myself around Alphas or Omegas, I’m always let down… people don’t exactly like me, y’know.”
”That’s not true—“
”You don’t count,” you snapped, “It’s like there’s always been this divide between me and everyone else. I can’t relate to them and they can’t relate to me— it’s like we’re on completely different wave lengths. Why do you think my siblings are my best friends?”
”Well I thought it was because you liked us.”
”Tch.” You tsked, “I do… I guess I’m just tired and afraid of being rejected.”
“Then date Bokuto,” she said, clasping your hands now, a shine in her eyes as she leaned in, “I’m telling you, you guys are perfect for each other. You’re both so delightfully weird and fun to be around, and he genuinely likes you. He told me he thinks you’re really pretty and I can’t even begin to explain how excited he was to finally learn more about you. And he’s so nice—“
”You just met him,” you scoffed.
”Yeah and unlike you he actually is transparent. But it would be good for you! You deserve to be happy!”
You sighed, pulling your hands from hers to rake them through your hair, “I’ll— well I guess I already have been thinking about it. But this month is so fucking crazy already— we have a game against the Adlers this week and a huge press conference and those are always a nightmare to manage, not to mention all the sponsors that have been breathing down my neck—“
”I get it, you’re busy” she cut you off, “But you’re always gonna have something to blame putting your love life on hold, so will you actually think about it.”
”Yeah— Yeah I will,” you said, looking at her with determination now.
“Good. Now go to bed, you have work in the morning.”
”Yeah. By the way, you’re banned from coming back,” you said, standing up.
”What? Why?”
”Two days babysitting you was enough. You don’t have to stay here but you can’t come with me to work, and I promise we’ll do something fun when I come back.”
Ami pouted, grumbling under her breath as you left the room.
* * * *
The following morning you had woken up to your alarm and just your alarm today.
Fumbling for your phone in your bedsheets you quickly turned off the alarm, before laying back with a sigh.
That had to have been one of the most unproductive nights of “sleeping” you’ve had in a while.
You just couldn’t stop thinking about Bokuto and all his gifts and everything he told you yesterday— you were losing your mind.
It was funny too, back when you were a teenager you would’ve jumped head first into a relationship with an Alpha that so proudly declared his feelings for you. You wouldn’t have thought twice about it.
But you weren’t that young Beta anymore.
You’ve chosen to put your career before a relationship, so mixing the two was always out of the question.
On top of that, and more glaringly… you were a Beta.
You two weren’t and would never be compatible biologically, hell, you hadn’t even noticed he was courting you for nine months.
But at the same time Bokuto was so sickeningly sweet and kind. Anybody would be lucky to have him as a mate.
You grabbed the pillow next to you, placed it over your head and screamed, spooking Mochi in the process.
You then pulled yourself out of your bed to start your day.
Standing in front of your closet, you had a conundrum. You had a few phone calls to make today but for the most part your plan was to watch practice.
On the one hand you could wear your tracksuit and spend the majority of your day in the gym like you planned or, you could wear a pantsuit and hide all day in your office like a little bitch just so you didn’t have to embarrass yourself in front of the team and Bokuto.
You knew yourself too well. Any professional facade you were able to maintain will be immediately crumbling upon talking or even seeing Bokuto for the forseeable future.
You grabbed your pantsuit.
It’s official, today would be the first you were shirking out on responsibility.
When you had opened your door after changing, you were immediately tackled to the ground.
”Amiiii,” you whined, “You’re gonna give me a concussion one day,” you glared at her grinning face above you.
”Soooo,” she dragged out.
”Whaaat?” You asked, mimicking her tone uneasily.
”Are you gonna go out with Bokuto!? Duh!?”
”I don’t know,” you huffed, “It’s all very confusing and we have a game tomorrow, I can’t get distracted right now!”
”I thought we talked about this last night!? Excuses!”
”Yeah, well, when the excuse is literally not even a day away then I’ll take that advice. Now off,” you wriggled beneath her.
”Booo,” she whined, rolling off, “Why do you make things so difficult.”
”I’ll stop making things difficult when life’s not difficult,” you stood up. “Now let me finish getting ready.”
You moved about your apartment as you readied yourself for the day, following your routine as always until you eventually found yourself at the doors to the gym.
Fuck— you don’t remember ever being this nervous going to work… not even on your first day.
You peaked through the windows of the doors. Some of the players were out stretching already but no sign of Bokuto.
Perfect.
You’d be in and out. You’d wave to the players, say good morning to coach and tell him you’ll be in your office all day, and you’ll be out.
A lump formed in your throat knowing you were about to lie to him.
But it was time to quit stalling, waiting any longer out here meant giving more time for Bokuto to finish getting ready in the locker room and coming out.
You braced yourself, walking into the gym. You waved to the players like you did every morning and walked straight to Samson.
”Morning coach.”
”Good morning Miss Manager,” he greeted, “Another day in the office huh?”
You cleared your throat awkwardly, “Yeah, I’ll try to stop by and watch practice later but I’m swamped today.”
He nodded in understanding, “No worries if you can’t though. It seems everyone’s busy with tomorrow’s match.”
”Right, well I’ll let you get to it, call me if you need anything.”
”Same goes for you.”
You nodded, turning to walk away.
Alright. Okay. Everything was fine.
You managed to lie straight through your teeth without any suspicion. And still no sign of Bokuto.
A sigh of relief escaped your parted lips as your hands came into contact with the cool metal of the door handle.
”BETA-CHANNN!!!”
Your heart plummeted.
As expected, a second later you were being swept off your feet and cradled in two very large arms.
And shit— it actually felt nice this time.
Your brain felt like mush all of a sudden.
”Did you like the mille fuille?” He asked excitedly.
“I-I did,” you stammered— was it always hot in here? Did you need to find a repair man for the a/c too? “It was very yummy.”
Yummy? What the fuck were you saying?
Bokuto cheered excitedly, “I made you something else today too, but I’ll give it to you later. Ami told me you don’t like public attention,” he ‘whispered’.
Speaking of which… your eyes glided over the gym full of Alphas all staring at you both.
”The knee pads fit nicely too,” you murmured shyly.
Why the fuck did you say that?
You literally opened your mouth to tell him to let go of you but instead that fucking word vomit came out.
”Bokuto-san, put her down and start stretching,” Samson suddenly shouted.
Oh God.
”Okay!” He answered before placing you down gently to your feet. “I’ll see you later Beta-Chan.”
You nodded, not trusting your voice, and nearly stumbled out of the gym.
Bokuto ran into the gym giddily, joining Atsumu, Hinata, and Sakusa in their stretches.
Bokuto grinned, humming to himself as all three men stared at him in shock.
”Ami really is Kamisama,” Atsumu said in complete shock.
”What the fuck just happened?” Sakusa deadpanned, complete and utter disbelief dripping from every word.
”That was the first time she didn’t tell you to put her down!” Hinata added, clapping Bokuto on the back.
”Ya know I’ve been tellin’ ya from the start to just fuckin’ ask her out, but nooo. A little Omega comes along and tells ya to do it once and he does it. That’s ’Mega privilege right there.”
”Oh let’s not get started on Omega privilege,” Inunaki groaned, tired of Atsumu’s rants on said topic.
“He’s not even listening,” Sakusa said, watching as Bokuto continued to hum in his own little world.
* * * *
You were sitting underneath your desk.
Why?
You had no fucking clue as to why, all you knew was that you needed to be in a small space or the world was going to end.
Well perhaps that was a tad too dramatic but sitting under here did make you feel a little more sane even if the optics showed otherwise.
You just couldn’t stop thinking about the coach having to tell Bokuto to put you down.
You had been held in his arms long enough for the coach to see you weren’t doing anything about it and having to tell him to put you down himself.
You were going to get fired at this rate.
You haven’t even agreed to anything yet and you were already making a fool of yourself.
You wish you had work. You wish you had anything else to do in your office other than sitting underneath your desk.
He was going to come by here and give you more presents today.
He said he was going to ask you out again.
What were you going to say.
If you’re already acting like a lovesick idiot how the fuck are you going to continue to be professional in the workplace.
There was that and then there was also… Ushiwaka.
You cursed.
Maybe you wouldn’t be so freaked out about dating Bokuto if he hadn’t gotten in your head all those years ago.
Alphas and Betas are not compatible.
That’s what he had told you after you asked him out.
And yeah, of course you knew that. You were pretty sure the percent of Alpha/Beta relationships being successful was only like 1.2%. Even then those alphas in those successful relationship had higher omega hormone levels than an Alpha such as Bokuto would have.
Which was why it was even a miracle in and of itself that Bokuto was even interested in you at all.
But that fact wasn’t what deterred you from pursuing Alphas, it never was.
What did deter you was the rest of what he had said.
You sighed sadly.
You weren’t cut out for this. Of course you wouldn’t be able to give Bokuto what he needs, which is a perfect little omega that he can dote on and take care of. Someone that needed that protection only a strong Alpha such as him could provide.
You couldn’t scent him. You knew he could scent you but that was always an intensely intimate act between two mates and… you can’t do your part. He’d be missing out on a bonding ritual that you knew strong Alphas like him, especially ones who ran purely on instinct, needed.
And as embarrassing as it was, it was also an undeniable reality. What the fuck could you do to help him when he starts to rut.
You already knew the conditions these Alphas worked under. Their off season was hellish.
Taking them off their rut suppressants made for violent and dangerous ruts that even some of their own Omegas told you that they couldn’t help them through it to the end.
You heard Atsumu had to replace every piece of furniture in his bedroom.
You heard Hinata broke down his door when he could smell his Omega neighbor go into heat due to his own rut.
You really weren’t cut out for this.
Maybe if he wasn’t as strong as he was, maybe if he was a lesser Alpha, it’d be different.
But he wasn’t. He, along with the rest of the players, were the top of the pecking order. He went anywhere and other Alphas were submitting to him, recognizing him as the Alpha.
That’s just the way it fucking was.
You didn’t wait for him to come during lunch break.
You needed more time, this invisible pressure weighed on you like a ton of bricks. You thrived off of having deadlines and schedules, and the fact that you didn’t have a deadline when it came to giving Bokuto your answer was deeply fucking with you.
He’d probably ask you out until he got a straight answer from you for another nine months and that just felt so evil to do— to make such a pure hearted Alpha wait like that all because of this fucking inferiority complex you had.
You decided to eat out instead when you knew coach would be calling a lunch break. Just a few more hours to think and you’d give him an answer, a real answer so he wouldn’t be wasting his time courting you anymore.
But you already had a feeling you knew what you were going to tell him.
There was a cute little café you went to on occasion. It reminded you of a café back home you used to go to after being rejected and wanting to be alone to wallow in your own self pity.
You just never thought you’d ever go there before contemplating whether or not you’d reject a perfectly suitable and sweet Alpha.
You were grateful for the familiarity of solitude as you sat inside, staring out the window and watching all the passerby’s on the sidewalks… most of which being happy couples, you noted bitterly.
You had been by yourself like this for so long. You don’t even know what kind of person you’d be in a relationship.
You couldn’t do it.
Bokuto deserved better.
By the time you finished lunch and made it back to the gym the boys were already hard at work again.
And speaking of work, you had some of your own to actually get to now.
You made the few phone calls you had penned down in your ‘To Do’, gathering details for tomorrow’s match and finalizing the plans.
By the time you were finished it was time to go home.
Packing your bags, there was an eager knock at your door.
You knew who it was.
You sighed, “Come in!”
”Beta-chan!” Bokuto exclaimed, throwing your door open.
He was in such a good mood you finally noticed how dramatically your own mood changed from the flustered, bashful Beta you were this morning.
”Hi Bokuto-san,” you gave him an uneasy smile, trying not to give away how unstable you had felt all day.
”You weren’t in your office for lunch.” He said, coming up to your desk as you packed up your bag.
”Yeah, I… kinda forgot to pack one today,” you lied, your bento was still full, “So I went out for lunch.”
”Oh,” he frowned, “I would have given you mine— I can go back to making bentos for you everyday!” He lit up suddenly at the prospect of caring for you in a way Alphas typically cared for their Omegas.
“No, no, that’s alright,” your voice sounded strained. “Thank you though.”
”I brought the gifts,” Bokuto then said, rifling through his duffle bag. “Here!” He found what he was looking for and gave it to you.
”Dangos?” You bit back a smile, heart fluttering.
”Yeah! And this!” He handed you a box.
Your jaw fell to the floor. It was a rare figure from one of your favorite anime, you looked up to him and stammered, “H-How—“ your stomach dropped.
”Kenma helped me!”
You looked back down to the box and then to the dangos.
”I,” God your heart was fucking pounding, “I can’t accept these,” you murmured, “I’m sorry.”
”But I brought those for you,” he suddenly seemed to deflate, “I want you to have them and I want to ask you out on a date again.”
”But that’s,” you groaned, slumping in your seat, “I can’t date you Bokuto-san.” You stared hard into the floor— you felt like such a fucking bitch, you couldn’t even look at the man that had been pursuing you for nine months while you rejected him.
”Wait— but why,” he pressed both hands against the top of your desk, leaning over it, “You don’t like the gifts?” He asked sadly. “I can get better one’s— I can make you something else—“
“Oh Koutarou,” you murmured sadly.
Bokuto became stiff, all too aware that that was the first time you had ever called him by his first name, without an honorific no less.
“You’re so sweet. You’ve always been so sweet and kind towards me and I want to say yes to you— I want to say yes so bad—“
”Then say yes!” He insisted, lighting up again, “I already have it planned out. There’s that new rom-com coming out on Valentine’s Day that we can go see. Then I’ll take you to a bakery— we can have cake for dinner! Then I’d walk you back home and kiss you at the doorstep just like in the movies— hey, why are you crying?” He lost the boyish excitement in his voice.
He ran around your desk and kneeled in front of you, grabbing both armrests on either side of you. You wiped at your tears furiously, “I’m sorry,” you tried to laugh through the tears, “‘m just emotional I guess.”
It was kind of silly. A few days ago you never even considered that dating Bokuto Koutarou was a possibility, and now here you were, crying over him.
“You’re such a sweetheart Koutarou and I am so sorry for not realizing you liked me sooner. I would have never let it drag on for that long if I had known.”
God, he was just staring at you with these big puppy eyes that just stabbed your heart.
“Because-Because you like me back?” He sounded so hopeful.
”Because I think this part would have hurt less. I’m not—We’re not compatible,” you said, staring into those puppy eyes, “I can’t give you what you need. You’re such a strong Alpha Koutarou, you need an Omega that’ll know how to take care of you the only way an Omega knows how to. I can’t do that as a Beta.”
”But… I don’t care about things like that. It’s never bothered me that you’re a Beta, I can still be a good Alpha to you— we can figure out how to make it work,” he replied sadly, hand inching towards your own on the armrest. “Does this have to do with Ushiwaka. Ami told us he said something to you back then. She said you stopped pursuing a relationship after his rejection.”
You sighed, of course she told him.
”Yes,” you admitted, “He said some things that at the time really hurt but I think… he was right.”
”How can he be right when what he said is making you so sad.”
You sniffled again, wrapping your arms around Bokuto in a hug, to which he followed suit. You figured professionalism was out the door the moment he asked you out yesterday. “Thank you Koutarou. If… If I was an Omega or even if we met a few years earlier I wouldn’t have even hesitated going out with you. But I just can’t.”
It hurt knowing that the first man that was offering something you’ve wanted for so long was someone you’d also have to turn down.
”Then I’ll wait until you can.”
“I’m begging you Koutarou, for both our sakes…” you murmured into his shoulder, ”Please don’t.”
You loved love.
”I…” His arms tightened around you, voice dripping in a sadness you hadn’t thought he was even capable of, “Okay, if that’s what you really want then… I’ll stop.”
But it wasn’t meant for you.
————————————————————————
Part 4
Taglist: @staygoldsquatchling02 @tillyt04 @/niiiya @/silverhairsimp
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