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This was the third place, and Ten still hadn’t found Taeyong anywhere. His Alpha’s scent trail was faint everywhere he went. It's giving exhaustion, detergent, the soft cedar undertone Ten loved, but never strong enough to mean Taeyong was still there. His number was unreachable, and none of his friends knew where he was.
One of the senior teacher in the School where Taeyong taught told him that the Alpha had gone home early to stop by an electronics repair shop to help fix an organ. His scent there was already cold when Ten arrived, which means Taeyong has move to another place.
Ten tought, third time is charm. But when he rushed to the repair shop, the owner said Taeyong had only checked something briefly and then left for the catering place where he sometimes worked as a courier. And for the fourth time, again, when Ten arrived there, Taeyong wasn’t around. Ten can feel Taeyong's scent lingering in the kitchen mixing wih burned sugar and metal trays, and it's just a faint one, not that strong which means Taeyong also already gone quite a long time ago.
Letting out a sigh that was half-annoyed and half-worried, Ten got back into his car. Taeyong’s number was still unreachable, probably out of battery. Alphas could endure anything except remembering to bring a charger. Especially his Alpha.
Ten’s eyes drifted to the cake box on the passenger seat, and his omega instincts tightened painfully in his chest. Was it too much that on his birthday he wanted to celebrate with his mate, well, even if it's unofficial mate, when the man was busy? It was Monday, after all. Ten knew weekdays devoured Taeyong whole. For the past two years he could celebrate his birthdays with Taeyong only because they fell on weekends.
Fuck weekdays.
Driving while spacing out made Ten unaware he had already entered the cramped neighborhood where Taeyong rented a room. Omega or not, Ten hated the surrounding of this place. The alleys were too narrow, too damp, too unsafe even for an Alpha, morever Alpha who worked this hard like Taeyong. But Taeyong refused to move no matter how many times Ten offered help. And Ten knew it very well it's because his Alpha Pride. Too thick for its own good.
Ten parked in front of the minimarket—because Taeyong's rent house area has no place for car parking–and stepped out, the faint trace of Taeyong’s scent already comforting him.
“Baby?”
Ten turned around, and there he was. His Alpha, Taeyong, hoodie slightly damp with sweat, carrying a small plastic bag from the minimarket. His Alpha scent, normally steady cedar and warm amber, was thin today. He looked strained.
Ten frowned immediately. “Your phone was off.”
“Sorry,” Taeyong murmured. “I was planning to come to your place right after this.”
Ten stepped closer, letting his own scent which sweet lavender with a mild citrus note brush gently against Taeyong’s. The Alpha visibly softened. “It’s fine. Let’s just stay at your place.”
Taeyong avoided his eyes, scratching his head. “Sorry, love.”
Ten huffed, but there was a growing pout on his lips. “Stop apologizing. The cake’s getting stale.”
Taeyong smiled, arm stretched out to intertwined their fingers, and the Alpha’s thumb rubbed soothingly over his pulse point to show an instinctive gesture to calm an anxious omega. And of course it's worked. Ten leaned into him as they walked.
But Ten noticed something in the plastic bag. The scents of eucalyptus, menthol, and antacid tablets. His omega senses sharpened instantly.
“Baby… are you sick? why did you buy medicine?”
Taeyong didn’t answer, unlocking the door quickly. The interior was usually tidy, but today the air inside smelled of stress, probably overworked by Alpha musk and sleepless nights, faint stomach acid. Ten’s heart squeezed.
“Have you eaten?” Ten asked again, grabbing Taeyong’s arm.
Taeyong cupped Ten’s cheek instead. Hi rub his thumbs on Ten's cheek gently, but Ten can feel he's tired. “I’ve eaten, Love. Wait here, I'll take plate from the kitchen.”
Ten watched him disappear, unsettled by how Taeyong’s scent wavered. An Alpha’s scent should be strong and grounding. But today it was thin, it was stretched.
When Taeyong returned with the plate in his hand, he place them on the mini table right beside his bed. Ten who sit on his bed then crossed his arms. “So why’d you buy the medicine?” asked Ten so persistent he didn't want Taeyong to ignore his question.
“Just in case,” Taeyong mumbled, open the cake box, then prepare the cake so Ten can eat it immediately.
Ten sighed. “Taeyong…”
Before the conversation could escalate, Taeyong suddenly leaned forward. Ten closed his eyes as if anticipating something. But it turned out that Taeyong just want to take something behind Ten. A small black box with a pretty pink ribbon.
“Happy birthday, Love.”
Ten blinked, flustered. “I thought you were gonna kiss me.”
Taeyong laughed softly, his scent become warming. “Come here.”
With a cute smil, Ten leaned to Taeyong, he let tje Alpha to kiss his forehead and jaw, the kind of act coming from instinctive Alpha affection that made Ten’s omega’s heart flutter.
"Can I open itu now?" Asked Ten like an excited child, a little bit forget about his question and grey answer from Taeyong.
"Yes, baby."
The gift was a beautiful white-gold bracelet with small amethyst stones, February birthstone. Ten's birthstone.
“Honey… this is expensive,” Ten whispered, scent turning anxious.
Taeyong’s scent immediately shifted, reacting to Ten’s distress. “But you like it, right?”
“Well, you gave it to me. Of course I like it.” Ten pouted, trying to hide how touched he was. “But baby, be honest with me. Did you use your savings for this? The Palace engraving... this costs a lot.”
Taeyong swallowed, shoulders tense. His Alpha aura dimmed. Ten felt the emotional shift instantly. His omega sensitivity was a curse sometimes. Ten reached out, scent-softening to soothe his Alpha.
“Baby… you can talk to me.”
Taeyong finally looked at him, exhaustion swimming in his eyes. His scent told a story long before his words did. It suppressed anger, shame, stress, fear of burdening his omega.
“I’m ashamed. I don’t want my already low position to sink even lower if you know what I’m dealing with. I know you won’t think less of me. But I… I can’t handle opening up about it. Not yet.”
Ten huffed softly. “You’re right. I would never think less of you. I don’t even know your problems yet."
“What do you want to know about me?” Taeyong asked finally.
“Everything. Everything you’ve been hiding. But if you’re not comfortable, it’s fine,” Ten said, looking away.
Upon seeing how cute his omega when he's lowkey sulking, Taeyong finally relaxed. He chuckled softly, then took out his phone, opened a WhatsApp album, and handed it to Ten.
“That’s my dad, his new mate, and their kids. It’s a recent photo.”
Ten raised an eyebrow, examining the screen. An older man with Taeyong’s facial features, a much younger man beside him, and two teenagers flanking them.
“My dad found another mate when I was in high school. My mom had died a month earlier. With his new mate, he has two more kids.”
Ten looked up.
“Since the beginning, my mom was the one with the bigger income. Dad was just her right-hand man. When she passed away, despite of being an Alpha, he didn’t understand the business well enough to keep it running… and it eventually collapsed. After I graduated vocational school, my dad told me to just work. He said I'm an Alpha, I could just easily get any job. But he forgot to check the mirror. I probably inherit his idiocity when it comes to education and work. Now he was unemployed, so I had to support him and his new family.”
Ten want to protest that it's not true. Taeyong is not stupid like he claimed himself like that. But Ten choose to stayed silent, letting Taeyong continue.
“I used to live alone, never imagined having extra mouths to feed. But Dad told me to pay for my step-siblings’ college and high school. He even asked for capital to start a business, and once he tried using my name to apply for a bank loan,” Taeyong sighed deeply. “At first, it's fine by me, baby. He's my dad, perhaps it's my time to give him back. I don't mind to help my step siblings. It even makes me happy that I can be help for someone else. But I can't deny, sometimes it’s exhausting.” His laugh was small and bitter.
Ten felt his throat tighten. Taeyong’s scent shifted mid-story, going sharp with shame, and Ten immediately reached forward, pressing their foreheads together, an intimate gesture to comfort his Alpha.
“That’s why you’ve been taking so many jobs lately? Until you got sick like this?” Ten can't imagine how Taeyong spent times in daily until the Alpha with much more stamina like him looked like he's about to faint from exhaustment.
The expectations an Alpha was supposed to fulfill.
The money Taeyong earned disappearing to places Ten never knew existed.
Taeyong gave a faint smile. “This is why I’m embarrassed telling you my family problems." Taeyong backed up a little, his scent now shift into something very cloudy, like in the verse of giving up, "if you want to break up now, I understand. I was never good enough for you. I'm glad I haven't mark you yet so you doesn't need to spend—”
“What are you talking about?” Ten immediately snapped, lightly smacking Taeyong’s cheek. “Say something that stupid again and I’ll actually slap you.” He then pulled Taeyong into his arms, forcing the man to rest against him. Ten might be the Omega, but grew up in the supportive environment made him not scare to expressing himself, even to an Alpha.
While releasing his soothing pheromone to make Taeyong calm, Ten caressed his back gently, “cry if you need to. I won’t tell anyone. You’re human, Taeyong. It’s normal to feel sad. Even Iron Man cries.”
Taeyong chuckled as he wrapped his arms around Ten’s waist, burying his face into his omega's neck, sniffing the scent even more like he needed it the most. His chuckle slowly broke into sobs, ears turning red, the veins on his neck standing out. That comforting scent from Ten finally can make Taeyong comfortable enough to show his vulnerability.
Ten still rubbed his back gently, letting the man release years’ worth of weight he had been carrying. Maybe after this Ten would have to tell him just how much he admired him. How hard he worked, how dedicated he was.
Finances were a sensitive, complicated matter. When one hole was patched, another would appear. It's structural hardships. Taeyong might not have been obligated to support his father’s family, but their cultural pressure didn’t work that way. The burden wasn’t only financial, but also emotional. Taeyong got prressure both from outside and within.
“If you’re tired, if you need someone to listen, I’m here, baby. Talk to me. Complain to me. Ask for help. Don’t think about tomorrow or far-away worries. What matters is today,” Ten whispered, still stroking Taeyong’s shoulder. His sobs had stopped, though his body still trembled slightly. “If you’re sad today, I’ll help cheer you up. We can take turns. If I can’t help, at least we can cry together.”
Ten heard a soft snort and Taeyong’s quiet laugh. The man stroked his hair, then lifted his flushed, swollen-eyed face.
“I’m ashamed,” Taeyong whispered. “I’m supposed to provide. Omegas deserve stability. But I—”
“Stop,” Ten breathed, cupping his cheeks. “I didn’t fall in love with your wallet, Alpha. I fell in love with you.”
Taeyong exhaled shakily. "I'm sorry that I need more time to decide something big about our relationship... I still need to make sure my life is comfortable enough for mark you and... for marrying you,” he muttered the last word quietly, his cheeks turned red.
Ten’s eyes widened. “Baby…”
“I was aiming to do the ceremony in Thailand,” Taeyong murmured. “so it close to your hometown.”
Ten’s heart combusted. An Alpha from a poor family, planning so quietly, so diligently, just to give his omega a proper future.
He tackled Taeyong onto the bed, hugging him tightly. “Best gift of the year,” Ten said softly, touching his Alpha's nose gently,"
“The bracelet?” Taeyong teased, his shyness gone in second, leaning closer while emitting his pheromone.
Ten shook his head. “No, no. You choosing to share your story with me... i feel like that completes my job as soon to be your mate.”
Taeyong laughed softly, scent finally warm, wrapping around Ten like it always should.
“I love you so much,” Taeyong whispered.
Ten’s scent flared happily, curling sweet around them both.
“I love you too, Alpha.”