"She told me bonds were dangerous." I said, my voice barely above a whisper, my eyes fixed on his face. "Not because the alphas were bad. Because the bonds themselves were too powerful. Too permanent."
Jae-won was quiet, letting me continue.
"She loved the alpha fate chose for her." I said, the old story heavy on my tongue. "But she loved my father more. So she broke the bond. Severed it to choose him instead." I swallowed hard, tears pricking at my eyes. "And it killed her. Slowly. Over twelve years."
"I know." Jae-won said softly, his hand finally crossing the space between us to rest on my knee, warm through the fabric, his touch gentle despite the strength in his fingers. "That's why I've been so careful. Why we've all been so careful. We know what you're risking by choosing us."
"But this is different." I said, testing the words, needing to hear them out loud. "Isn't it? She broke her bond. I would be... completing mine."
"Yes." Jae-won's thumb traced gentle patterns on my leg, his voice soft but certain. "A completed bond isn't a broken one. It's not something that will slowly tear you apart. It's something that makes you stronger. More whole."
"And if I ever wanted to leave?" The question came out small, the deepest fear I hadn't been able to voice until now.
"Then we would let you go." Jae-won's voice was rough with pain at even the thought, but steady with conviction. "It would hurt. It would hurt more than anything. But we would never trap you, Keira. We would never make you choose between staying and dying."
"You'd just... let me leave?" I asked, searching his face for any sign of deception.
"We'd beg you to stay." Jae-won admitted, a sad smile tugging at his lips, his dark eyes soft with honesty. "We'd fight for you. We'd do everything in our power to make you happy enough that you'd never want to go. But if you truly wanted to leave? Yes. We'd let you. A completed bond doesn't have to be broken to be... set aside. It's not the same as what your mother went through. It would hurt, but it wouldn't kill you."
I stared at him — this alpha who commanded rooms just by entering them, who carried the weight of a pack on his broad shoulders, who had spent an entire week putting my needs above his own wants. Who was looking at me now like I held his entire future in my hands.
Because I did. I held all of theirs.
"I'm scared." I admitted, the confession feeling different now than it had all the other times I'd said it, more settled somehow.
"I know. I'm scared too." Jae-won squeezed my hand, his grip firm but gentle, his expression softening.
"You? The pack alpha? Scared?" The surprise in my voice was genuine, my eyes widening.
"Terrified." Jae-won admitted, something vulnerable flickering in his dark eyes, a self-deprecating smile tugging at his lips. "Of hurting you. Of not being enough. Of failing you or the pack. Of wanting too much and pushing you away. The alpha instincts don't come with an instruction manual, Keira. They just come with a lot of pressure to get everything right."
The honesty in his voice cracked something open in my chest. I'd been so focused on my own fears that I hadn't considered his. Hadn't thought about what it must be like to be the one everyone looked to for guidance, for decisions, for strength.
"Can you hold me?" The request slipped out before I could overthink it, soft and small in the quiet room. Jae-won didn't hesitate. He shifted, opening his arms, and I crawled into them like I belonged there. His chest was warm against my cheek, his heart beating steady under my ear, his cedar-and-thunder scent surrounding me completely.
"I think I want Option B too. The marks. All of it." I said into his chest, the words muffled by his shirt, my fingers curling into the fabric.
"You don't have to decide yet." Jae-won said, his arms tightening around me, a shudder running through his frame, his breath catching audibly.
"I know." I tilted my head up to look at him, finding his dark eyes already on me, soft with something that looked like hope and fear tangled together. "But I think I have. I just... I wanted you to know. That I'm choosing this. Choosing you. All of you."
"Keira..." My name came out rough, reverent, his hand coming up to cup my face, his thumb brushing along my cheekbone with trembling gentleness.
"Don't say anything yet." I pressed my face back into his chest, suddenly overwhelmed, my heart racing. "Just... just hold me. For tonight. We can figure out the rest tomorrow."
"Okay. Whatever you need." Jae-won's voice was thick with emotion, his arms wrapping more securely around me, his chin coming to rest on top of my head. We lay back on his bed together, my head on his chest, his arms around me. His room wasn't the nest — didn't have the layered scents of all five alphas woven together — but it had him. His scent, his warmth, his steady heartbeat. And right now, that was enough.
The bond pulsed between us, warm and steady, finally settling into something that felt like certainty.
"Thank you. For telling me what you want. For being honest." I murmured against his chest, my eyes growing heavy despite everything, exhaustion finally catching up with me.
"Thank you for asking. For trusting me enough to ask." Jae-won pressed a kiss to the top of my head, his lips warm against my hair, his voice soft in the darkness.
My omega purred quietly in my chest, content in a way that felt new and familiar all at once.
Choosing, my omega whispered as sleep pulled me under.Finally choosing. Ours.
I fell asleep in Jae-won's arms, my decision final as I let myself finally believe it was going to be okay.
