Four pairs of eyes turned to me as I entered. Four incomplete bonds humming with anticipation and anxiety and hope.
"She's asleep." I settled into my usual spot at the head of the room, the leather of the armchair creaking softly under my weight. The position felt heavier tonight than it usually did. "The scenting helped. Her fever's down, her color's better."
"She really chose to stay." Hwan stopped pacing, turning to face me with something like wonder in his voice. His golden amber bond was practically glowing through his chest, visible even without trying to sense it. His fingers were trembling slightly at his sides. "She's really going to?—"
"She asked for time." I cut in, not unkindly, watching his face carefully for signs of disappointment. "Before completing the bonds. She wants to know us first. The real us, not the idol that are seen everywhere."
"How much time?" Tae-min leaned forward with barely contained energy, his knee bouncing against the chair in a rapid staccato rhythm. His crimson bond flickered with anxiety beneath his forced calm. "Because her heat — if it hits before she's ready?—"
"We don't know exactly when." I ran a hand through my hair, feeling the weight of uncertainty settle in my shoulders. "Could be days, could be a week. Her body's been through a lot."
"We should call a pack doctor tomorrow." Min-jun shifted in the kitchen doorway, the dish towel twisting between his fingers as he spoke. His voice was soft but certain, his dark eyes steady on mine. "Someone who specializes in omega health. Get her properly checked, make sure we know what we're dealing with timeline-wise."
"Agreed." I nodded, grateful for his practical thinking. "But based on what I've read about five incomplete pack bonds... her heat will come faster than normal. Her body's trying to force the completion. We might have a week. Maybe less."
The weight of that settled over the room like a blanket. A week — maybe less, but we wouldn’t know until she saw a doctor— to earn the trust of a woman who'd spent twelve years building walls against everything we represented.
"The scenting helped." Min-jun stepped forward from the doorway, the dish towel now clutched against his chest like a shield. His rose pink bond pulsed with something soft, almost reverent. "When you scented her earlier — I could feel it through the pack bond. Her whole system settled."
I nodded slowly, remembering the way she'd relaxed against me, the fever in her skin finally cooling beneath my touch. "It did. Which is why I think... during each one-on-one session, whoever's with her should scent her. If she's willing. It'll help stabilize the bonds, ease the soul sickness, buy us more time before her heat forces the issue."
"So it's not just about getting to know her." Jin-ho unclasp his hands, pressing his palms flat against his thighs as he processed. His violet bond pulsed with understanding, with the quiet intensity he usually reserved for composing. "It's about helping her heal."
"Both." I met his eyes, saw the determination settling there. "Connection and care. That's what she needs from us."
"One-on-one time." Min-jun nodded slowly, the dish towel relaxing in his grip as the plan took shape. "Each of us gets dedicated time with her. No distractions. Just... getting to know each other."
"That's what I was thinking." I leaned back in the armchair, letting my gaze travel across each of their faces. "We take turns. Give her space to connect with each of us individually before she has to navigate all five of us at once."
"Who goes first?" Hwan's voice was immediate, eager, his whole body angling toward me like a plant seeking sunlight. The hope flared in his eyes — the golden amber bond straining toward the room where she slept, desperate to be near her again.
"Bond trigger order." I watched his face light up even as something in my chest clenched painfully. "Hwan, then Jin-ho, then Tae-min, then Min-jun. I go last."
The silence that followed was heavy with unspoken questions. I could feel them all looking at me — Hwan with grateful surprise, his lips parted slightly like he wanted to say something but couldn't find the words. Jin-ho with quiet understanding, his head tilting almost imperceptibly to the side. Tae-min with barely concealed curiosity, his bouncing knee finally stilling. Min-jun with the gentle concern he couldn't seem to turn off, his brow creasing with worry.
"Hyung." Tae-min's voice was hesitant, his crimson bond flickering with uncertainty as he gripped the arm of the chair. "You don't have to?—"
"Yes, I do." My voice came out rougher than I intended, and I forced myself to take a breath, to unclench the hands I hadn't realized I'd balled into fists against the armrests. "I'm pack alpha. My instincts are... stronger. Harder to control. If I go first,I might push too hard, move too fast, scare her before she's had a chance to see that the others aren't like that."
"You wouldn't scare her." Hwan crossed his arms over his chest, his chin lifting with stubborn loyalty. Even he didn't sound entirely convinced, his golden amber bond wavering with uncertainty that matched my own.
"I might." The admission cost me more than I wanted to show, and I felt my jaw tighten against the vulnerability of it. "You didn't see her face when I found her in the park. When the bond triggered and she realized who I was. There was a moment — just a flash — where she looked at me like I was exactly what she'd been afraid of."
The room went very still. Hwan's arms dropped to his sides. Jin-ho's breath caught audibly. Tae-min's eyes went wide. Min-jun pressed the dish towel against his mouth like he was holding back words.
"She knows you're not." Min-jun lowered the towel, stepping closer with careful, measured steps. His voice was barely above a whisper, his rose pink bond aching with the need to comfort. "She let you scent her, hyung. She wouldn't have done that if she thought?—"
"She let me scent her because I asked permission first. Because I gave her the choice." I met his eyes, then looked at each of them in turn, making sure they understood the weight of what I was saying. "That's what we all need to do. Every step of the way. Give her the choice. Let her lead. Never —never— push for more than she's willing to offer."
"Ground rules." Jin-ho's voice was thoughtful, measured, and there was approval in his tone. His violet bond settled into something like calm certainty, the anxious flickering finally stilling. "You want to establish ground rules."
"I want us all to be on the same page." I leaned forward, resting my elbows on my knees, feeling the weight of leadershippressing down on my shoulders like it always did. "This isn't like anything we've done before. This isn't schedules and performances and knowing our marks. This is her. Our omega. The person who completes our pack. We cannot afford to mess this up."
"So what are the rules?" Tae-min slid off the arm of the chair, dropping into the seat properly for the first time all night. His earlier restlessness shifted into focused attention, his crimson bond thrumming with determination. "Tell us, hyung. We'll follow them."
I took a breath. Let it out slowly. Felt the indigo bond pulse in my chest, steadying me. "Rule one: no alpha commands. Ever. Not even gentle ones, not even suggestions that could be mistaken for commands. She needs to know we will never do that to her."
Four heads nodded in unison — Hwan's jaw set with determination, Jin-ho's eyes never leaving my face, Tae-min leaning forward like he was memorizing every word, Min-jun's hands finally still against the dish towel.
