Dejun x Joohyuk

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Even though they were soaking in a hot spring on a chilly evening, Dejun swore that his entire body was as frigid as a block of ice when he heard the conviction in Joohyuk's voice. Honeymoon? Mark him? He was pliant as Joohyuk whisked him out of armsreach from the stranger. Naturally, Dejun's arms wrapped around Joohyuk's neck and back, tightening against the bigger man while the two alphas hacked away at each other verbally.

"I dunno man, he don't look like your mate to me." the other alpha scoffed, intentionally releasing a bout of pheromones to test Dejun's resistance.

Dejun smelled the strong scent right away. It wasn't all that unpleasant, but it definitely wasn't anything good compared to Joohyuk's smell. "Ewww hyung!!" he whined, burying his nose against Joohyuk's scent gland on his neck, "What's that smell! Make it go away!" He just loved playing the role of Joohyuk's soon-to-be-mated omega lover, so anything flew, as long as the other alpha kept egging them on.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk hadn't intended to Comand Dejun—he didn't even know if it would work, but for some reason, Dejun fell quiet right away. Now that one of these nuisances was dealt with, there was still the other alpha standing over them, his nether region barely covered by his towel. When the alpha crouched down, Joohyuk's arms wrapped around Dejun's waist to bring him further, turning him so he wouldn't be face-to-face with the lewd man. "We're on our honeymoon," Joohyuk said, willing to say anything, make any excuse, before he rose out of the water to physically fight the alpha. "I'm going to mark him tonight. Or do you need me to do that in front of you to prove anything?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun grinned from ear to ear when he felt the grip around his body tighten. It was enough for him to momentarily endure the intense heat that was radiating all throughout his body. Or maybe his insides were reaching similar levels of heat. Joohyuk was claiming him! All the past hurt at the beach and barbecue restaurant aside, this was the best night of Dejun's life! He couldn't decide which was better - being pressed against /his/ alpha's body or having /his/ alpha lay claim over him! Dejun gasped when he was ordered to stay still. He was so giddy with the turn of events that his body naturally listened without him thinking, and he calmed in Joohyuk's arms. "Okay hyung~" he hummed.

"I don't see no mark on him," the other alpha started to sneer, "How can you claim he's yours?" He grinned and crouched down, looking Dejun in the eyes, "This guy won't mark you. You need to find an alpho who will, that's when you know they'll value you. Right, sweetheart?"

@☭ Xiao Dejun "Absolutely not," Joohyuk said when Dejun tried to flounce over there again. He was incredibly stupid for an omega who moved to a different country by himself. Did his family not care if he had self-preservation skills or not? Ignoring the way Dejun's pained moan from the hot water heated Joohyuk up even further, Joohyuk's impatience got the better of him, and he shot at glare in the alpha's direction.

The alpha laughed. "Feisty. Is he yours?"

"Naturally," Joohyuk answered coldly. To Dejun, who was still writhing like a worm in his arms, he Commanded, "Behave."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk It was expected that Joohyuk wouldn't want to mingle with other people, and even less so if they were strangers. Dejun didn't really care or plan to move to the other pool, but if Joohyuk did accept on the off-chance, then he'd just get to take another glance at Joohyuk's toned body, this time dripping wet as the older moved. Dejun gasped when he was suddenly grabbed, and his entire body plunged into the pool. Two arms, like metal bars, tightened around him and held him in place as the hot water surped over his body. "Nghh owww!" he cried out, trembling in Joohyuk's hold. "What are you-" Dejun gasped, quieting when he realized that the alpha was addressing the other stranger. Immediately, he realized that this meant Joohyuk was protecting him! It was just like the stories his mama and baba had shared with him about standing up for each other!

Of course, Dejun had to test his theory of just how deeply Joohyuk wanted to protect him, so he wringled his tightly squeezed body against Joohyuk's firm, taut chest, "Hyungggg I'm burning!" he gasped, "Why don't we go over hm?"

Dejun didn't glance at the other alpha at all though, leaving all the power in Joohyuk's hands, as his baba would've expected his mama to do too.

@☭ Xiao Dejun "Of course not," Joohyuk muttered, wondering how naive Dejun must be to believe something like that. It was clear the alpha calling from across the spring was not looking out for Dejun's best interests. "Just come down. I don't like to bathe with other people." When Dejun continued to fuss about the temperature, the alpha from the other pool could see he wasn't coming over just yet. Rather than call again, the alpha emerged from his pool, taking his time to pick up his modesty towel before ambling in their direction.

Despite his occupation, Joohyuk not one for confrontation unless absolutely needed. In fact, maybe it was /because/ of his occupation that he knew it was better to avoid confrontation whenever possible. A fight, especially, never turned out good for all parties involved. Just before the alpha reached their pool, Joohyuk grabbed Dejun by his waist and pulled him straight into the water, locking in his arms to keep Dejun from struggling and jumping out. He glanced at the alpha when he stood before them, but made no greeting nor comment otherwise.

"It's too hot here, isn't it?" the alpha chuckled. "Come on over and join me and my buddies. We're here for a bachelor party."

"We're good," Joohyuk said, staring straight ahead rather than entertain the man.

"Aw, come on. Pretty thing like him shouldn't be burning his skin off like that."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Ahhh it's hot!" Dejun whined in protest as the hot water was dumped over his legs. He did like the way Joohyuk was shifting his body in a way that allowed his muscles to tighten and flex as he was scooping up water and adjusting himself for Dejun in the hot spring. "I'm coming, I'm coming!" Dejun exclaimed, though he practically made no progress from how he looked earlier. Eventually, he got used to the heat around his feet and then up to his calves. It was still much too hot to fully enter with his body too.

"Oi!" an alpha from the next pool called over to them when he noticed Dejun had yet to enter, "You could come try getting into this pool, it's not that hot over here buddy!"

Dejun eyed Joohyuk, wondering how true that statement was. "Pools can have different temperatures hyung? Should we go?"

@☭ Xiao Dejun "What's wrong with you? It's not hot at all." Joohyuk scooped up a handful of water and dribbled it over Dejun's exposed thighs, trying to get him to acclimate to it. It wasn't because he really wanted Dejun in the springs with him, but because Joohyuk noticed the stares from alphas only a pool over already. They had been chattering away, filling the hot springs with loud, rambunctious laughter until Dejun arrived. Now, they were silent, not bothering to make their staring any less obvious. Joohyuk desperately needed Dejun in the pool, now. "Just come in. It's going to feel good."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun balked as he watched Joohyuk enter the hot springs almost effortlessly. How could he not feel the heat piercing through his body? Dejun jumped around, alternating from one foot to another as he tried to give the hot springs one more chance. It was no use because the temperature continued to stay as hot as ever. Eventually he gave up at Joohyuk's beckoning and sat by the edge of the hot spring. He'd just have to acclimate slowly instead of submerging himself all at once. Dejun hovered his bare legs over the spring, draping his small towel over his loins. "Hyung," he called out, glancing over at Joohyuk's form, "How come it's not too hot for you? I can't get inside!" Dejun exclaimed.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk shook his head when Dejun burned himself trying to enter the spring. The water was much hotter than what Joohyuk and normal people were used to showering in, but it relaxed his muscles as soon as he submerged himself. He left his small modesty towel in the bucket he brought with him, since it was dark enough out for the water to obscure him. "Quit splashing around," Joohyuk said, sliding back against the natural rock walls of the spring and tilting his head back to rest over the ledge. "Aren't you the one who wanted to come down here? Come on, settle down. This is no place to fool around."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk As much as Dejun believed that he was still too scrawny to be taking his shirt off in front of Joohyuk, it felt awkward to wear a tank top into the hot springs - almost as if there was something he was trying to deliberately hide from the alpha. So, after they had acquired a locker and were in the showers, he pulled off his t-shirt, rinsing himself off under the shower head. It was hard to not look sideways to steal a glance at Joohyuk though. Dejun was so thankful for the hot spring because while he did have his fantasies about what lied underneath that police uniform, never in a million years did he expect it to be everything he wished for...and more. Joohyuk was muscular, evident of his diligent training at the police academy. Just as his face was the perfect creamy tan color, the color was evenly spread down to his body too. Though they weren't bulky, Joohyuk had pecs that Dejun could only marvel at in secret. His hands almost forgot to scrub the rest of himself off and he scrambled to keep up when Joohyuk was ready to head outside.

There were three hot springs that they could choose from, but Dejun and Joohyuk both agreed that the further one would be the best. He unwrapped the towel from his body and laid it down over a rack that had been placed on the side. With his wet skin, he felt colder now, and hurried towards the hot spring. "Hyung!" he called, neverminding that others were also present, "Come on! OW!" he yelped as his toe touched the hot surface of the spring water.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Luckily, even in the shower room, the steam was thick enough that it would help obscure Joohyuk... a little. On their way into the hot springs, they grabbed a key for their lockers and a wooden bucket with towels. Joohyuk did not say much as they showered first, keeping his back or his side toward Dejun at all times. He was just going through the motions without enjoying anything, too conscious that he had made a horrible decision. Despite how late it was, though, there were indeed a few others who were just coming down to the springs as well, and most of them were alphas. There was no way Joohyuk was going upstairs now and leaving Dejun behind. Once they were scrubbed down, Joohyuk wrapped a towel around his waist. His face felt hot—he told himself it was from the steam. "Let's go to that far corner, away from the others."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "You're going to go whether I go or not, right?"

"Mm," Dejun hummed, though the smile on his face was because of how confident he was that Joohyuk would come along with just a little more of a push. Grinning when he got what he wanted, Dejun jumped and nodded excitedly, "Okay hyung!" he exclaimed, sitting on the sole sofa chair that was in the room to wait. This couldn't have worked out better in his favor! He'd get to spend extra time with Joohyuk that had been missed because of Hoseok earlier in the day, and now he was going to see the alpha in a hot spring!

Once Joohyuk finished preparing, Dejun eagerly led the way back to the elevator and down to the first floor again. They passed the lobby and headed out to the back of the hotel where the hot springs were located. Immediately, the air in front of them became pungent with the smell of hot spring steam. The air around them became warmer, and the mist obscured the view that was more than 10 paces in front of them. Turning to look back at Joohyuk, Dejun exclaimed, "Hyung! This looks so nice!"

@☭ Xiao Dejun "Of course I can swim," Joohyuk said, never wanting to be seen as incompetent in front of any omega. "But it's just a little warm for the hot springs... isn't it?" He circled the perimetre of the room, checking for hidden cameras or the like. Once he finished, Dejun was already pulling out shorts out of his bag, as if he intended for this to happen long ago. He eyed Dejun, then realized with a sigh, "You're going to go whether I go or not, right?" He really didn't want Dejun in the springs, , possibly surrounded by other , lecherous alphas with not-so-good intentions, just like the one Dejun was so lucky to run into at the club. "Okay... Let me grab a towel."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Hyung, is it because you can't swim?" Dejun asked, "The hot springs shouldn't be that deep! I'll save you if you can't swim," Dejun reassured the older, seeing no reason to let a good hot spring soak slip out from right under their noses. When they entered their hotel room, Dejun was pleasantly surprised to find no partition door dividing them. He set his belongings down next to the bed that Joohyuk assigned to him, then started opening up his travel bag for a pair of extra shorts that he'd brought. He had intended on using them in the practice room, but now was as good a time as ever. "Hyung, you already paid for this hotel anyways. Let's go to the hot springs, hm? I heard that they're really good for you if you're stressed."

@☭ Xiao Dejun "Huh? I..." Go to the springs with Dejun? Joohyuk didn't want Dejun to see him, and he didn't want to see Dejun either. But there weren't many, if any, natural springs in Seoul, and it would be a shame to not take advantage of it while he was /paying/ for it here. Perhaps he could sneak down by himself after Dejun went to sleep. "Uh... I'm good with just a normal shower," Joohyuk said, taking a shuffling step away from Dejun and practically jumping out the elevator when the doors open. Their room was spacious, at least. Joohyuk set his belongings on the bed closer to the door. "Take the bed on the inside," he said. "Do you want to shower first?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun was much more complacent when he knew that he had an extra night with Joohyuk that Hoseok couldn't even begin to fathom of having. He could've swore that the heavens were in his favor because of all the hotels that Joohyuk could've chosen, he found one that had only one available to them. Of course Dejun could've easily just forked up his credit card to upgrade to a room in the higher price range, but he would probably jump off a cliff before he actually made such a stupid decision. Trying to hold back the beam on his face as Joohyuk offered to take his bag, Dejun handed it over and nodded, "Okay!" he hummed, sleep being the last thing on his mind. "Hyung, this place is quite nice. We should go to the hot spring together!" he suggested as he pressed close to Joohyuk in the (rather spacious) elevator.

@☭ Xiao Dejun "It's no trouble," Joohyuk said, feeling extremely glad it was too late for Dejun to see just how warm his cheeks had become. "I'd rather you not stay out here alone. Let's go." Since Joohyuk wasn't exactly swimming in cash, he did a quick search for the more affordable hotels in the area, and they ended up in a small inn that touted a natural outdoor spring for a reasonable price. Given the size of the dance competition, though, Joohyuk supposed he shouldn't have been surprised when the receptionist told him there was only one room left at the lower rate. When Joohyuk balked, she said (unhelpfully), "There's two double beds, though." Without looking at Dejun, Joohyuk accepted and paid. "Come on," he said, holding his hand out for Dejun's overnight bag. "We're on floor eight."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk It was already a stretch to hope that Joohyuk would be willing to take him back to Seoul, but to offer and stay the night in Gangneung just for Dejun? The young omega's heart was filled to the brim was adoration once again. "Hyung...is that really okay? It'll be so much trouble for you," Dejun said, immediately feeling a tiny bit of regret for speaking so harshly to Joohyuk earlier. However inconvenient it may have been for Joohyuk, Dejun was not stupid enough to turn down the older's offer though. "I guess we should get going then right? It's getting dark out here."

@☭ Xiao Dejun Dejun was insane if he thought Joohyuk was going to agree to his solution. There was no way Joohyuk was going to let a young omega stay all alone in a strange place. He knew he shouldn't be encouraging this kind of behaviour, this kind of relationship between them, but ever since they met, that seemed to be all Joohyuk was unintentionally encouraging. He sighed. This was going to be the last time, he promised himself. "Don't stay in Gangneung alone," he said with a cough, not quite meeting Dejun's eyes. "I... I'll go with you. Then I'll give you a ride back in the morning."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "Eo...they left!" Dejun confirmed, holding his phone up to show Joohyuk. He clicked his tongue in annoyance as he shook his head, "No, our school booked the bus through an outside organization I think, so I have no idea which company they used or what phone number to call." He sighed as he sent a text to Hendery. Immediately, his friend texted back saying they were already 'an hour out of the way'. Dejun didn't want to get his hopes too high with Joohyuk, since the older had so harshly rejected sharing his phone number earlier. There was probably even less of a chance that Dejun was going to be allowed in his car. "I guess I'll just go look for a hotel tonight and book a cab ride back to the train station tomorrow. I'll take the train back to Seoul." he thought aloud glumly to Joohyuk.

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk eyed Dejun with suspicion. Why would the organizer do something like that with no warning at all? Furthermore, didn't /anybody/ notice they were missing one very loud omega on that bus? Surely, Dejun's dance partner would have noticed? "What do you mean? They left already?" Joohyuk stood with Dejun, trying to squint at his screen to discern the text Dejun was reading. "What about your friend? Actually— Nevermind that. Can you get the tour organizer or the bus driver on the phone or something? I'm going to ask them to come back here to pick you up."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk If Hoseok hadn't barged into their dinner, then the competition wouldn't have affected Yibo's mood at all! It was all part of his calculated plan to achieve glory on the stage and have some more intimate time with Joohyuk as an excuse. Of course when his plan went south, his mood would be affected as a result! He didn't feel like explaining all of that though, so he simply answered with a noncommittal hum. Joohyuk may have seemed rather nonchalant, but Dejun felt a little better that the alpha eventually came around. "Yes, and they both can't have anyone else interrupting us unplanned, like that guy did." Dejun would spit Hoseok's name out of his mouth if he had to say it at all, so he simply refrained from using those words altogether. He felt a little better now that Joohyuk wasn't directing the conversation to include Hoseok. After all, Dejun only cared about his relationship with Joohyuk, and Hoseok could go bark up a tree for all he cared. A simple promise later, Dejun was finally willing to look back at Joohyuk again, "I guess I should get going back to the hotel," he said, pulling his phone out to check the location. They were in an unknown town on a span of beach that looked like it was the middle of nowhere. Dejun was starting to feel thankful that he had Joohyuk with him. Maybe they could get lost together and it'd be a fun little memory for them. His pupils widened in the dark though as he saw the messages flashing across his phone, "What! They cancelled the booking and booked a bus back to the city already!? How the hell am I going to get home! Why didn't Hendery call me!" Of course his friend had called him, but when he remembered that Dejun was out with Joohyuk, he had left his life in the alpha's hands altogether, as any true friend would do.

@☭ Xiao Dejun "You are," Joohyuk said, baffled Dejun would say that about himself. Well, it wasn't as if he had seen Dejun's grades, but based on Dejun's character, there was no way he wasn't smart. "But you should learn your limits. Don't let dance consume your life and... don't let your competition affect your mood either." He could tell Dejun was still a little upset, and it was slowly beginning to sink in that it was mainly Joohyuk's fault. The reality of that hurt, and all Joohyuk wanted to do was make up to the young omega. "You know, about your wishes... Guess I owe you two now."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk Dejun wasn't sure what the question Joohyuk wanted to ask was, and his heart skipped a beat. What if it was a continuation of his advice from earlier and he wanted to just ask that Dejun stop speaking ill of the omega that he was fond of? "Mm..." he answered warily. He didn't know what to expect, but when the question turned out to be something about himself, Dejun's shoulders relaxed a little. "I think so," he admitted, staring out at the ocean waves that rolled in slowly, at their own pace, "I don't think it's so bad, the balance that I have right now." He shrugged and clutched his arms as a breeze washed over him, "I enjoy how things are right now. I'm not that smart...but I'm not failing or anything."

@☭ Xiao Dejun The way Dejun said 'like' him, he was making it sound like Joohyuk fancied Hoseok. He stammered before deciding to shut up, not wanting to dampen Dejun's spirits further. He let the waves fill the silence again without his words, but he did let off a wave of pheromones to calm Dejun. "Can I ask you something?" Joohyuk began. He pulled his knees up to his chest, wrapping his arms securely around his shins. "Do you really think you can keep up with school if you put so much time into dance?"

@☭ Nam Joohyuk "No, he's not," Dejun snapped back harshly at Joohyuk, getting irritated once again that the older was defending that useless piece of sh- "He does hate me, did you not see the way he interrupted our meal earlier?" Dejun asked, "He can't stand the fact that I'm in the dance club, nor can he stand the fact that I met you and I want to hang out with you." Dejun turned his head away from Joohyuk, feeling the blood boiling inside of him. Dejun had done his best to be kind and sweet towards Joohyuk all this time too, but as his mama had said before, alphas could be at their most dense in the worst possible times. His Baba had been scolded quite a lot before, so this wasn't all too surprising to Dejun. "Nevermind, I don't know why I'm telling you all of this. Clearly you like him, so of course you'll speak up for him. Forget I said anything."

@☭ Xiao Dejun The Hoseok that Dejun was describing was definitely not the one Joohyuk knew, but he being in a competition also brought out peoples' competitive nature. "Perhaps it's just the tension with the club and the competition," Joohyuk said, not wanting Dejun to spend so much time and energy resenting someone. "I've known him since he was young... he has always been kind and respectful. And he doesn't hate you, so there's no need for you to hate him, too." Perhaps it was because Joohyuk wasn't competitive in nature, so he would never understand why Dejun thought like this. "You should focus on yourself. Don't let other people rile you up."

@☭ Nam Joohyuk There were many a topics that they could talk about, but Joohyuk just had to route it back to Hoseok. At least it wasn't a question that made Dejun's blood boil, since he was being openly invited to share his disdain of his rival. "It's not just because of the competition," he sighed, hugging his knees and drawing circles in the sand with a finger, "Maybe he's not like this to you hyung, but he's so rude and standoffish," Dejun said. "When we first joined the dance club, he kept commenting about my dancing and trying to give me 'advice' like he is better than me." The last statement made Dejun seem like a prude, so he added, "I like taking advice and learning from others, but that guy really thinks he can walk all over me. I joined the competition so I could be selected for the dance leadership team next year, but he joined too because he thinks someone with more experience should win. You tell me, why shouldn't I hate him?"

@☭ Xiao Dejun Joohyuk examined the sand, but there wasn't much he could discern in the dark. He sat beside Dejun, their shoulders just touching. Dejun was warm compared to the night sea breeze that blew past them, lifting their hair with the salty wind. For a moment, they watched the waves without conversation, letting the sound of water crashing against each other fill the space. As the sun sank beneath the horizon, Joohyuk found himself glancing more and more often toward Dejun, whose structured face was illuminated prettily by the golden sun. "Why do you hate Hoseok?" Joohyuk asked, for a lack of better thing to say. "It can't just be because of the competition? Then you'd hate everyone if that was the case."