The golden afternoon sunlight streamed through the towering windows of Taehyung's luxurious mansion, casting long shadows across the sleek, modern furniture. The air inside the spacious living room was still, filled only with the faint hum of his laptop keys clicking in rapid succession.
Kim Taehyung, an esteemed Alpha and professor at Xperia University, sat with his legs spread apart, his tall frame relaxed against the plush leather couch. His chiseled features were illuminated by the glow of the screen, his entire focus locked onto his work.
The silence was absolute, save for the measured rhythm of his fingers against the keyboard—cold, efficient, detached.
Then, a scent—soft yet undeniable—bloomed in the air, disrupting his concentration. Sweet, like vanilla with a faint hint of something floral. Subtle, but persistent.
Taehyung's jaw clenched.
That scent.
Even without looking up, he knew who it belonged to. His unwanted mate. His Omega.
Footsteps hesitated near the couch before a voice, hesitant yet determined, broke the silence.
"Here's your coffee."
Taehyung briefly lifted his gaze. Jeon Jungkook stood before him, holding a steaming cup of coffee between delicate fingers, his doe eyes uncertain yet filled with something Taehyung refused to acknowledge.
He didn't respond right away. His eyes flickered over the Omega's face—too soft, too young, too undeserving of the situation they'd been forced into. Then, just as quickly, his attention snapped back to his laptop.
"Thanks," he muttered flatly, fingers never pausing on the keyboard.
Jungkook lingered.
The tension in the air was thick, stretching between them like an invisible thread—fragile, yet impossible to ignore.
He swallowed, voice quiet but steady. "Can we go to your parents' house this weekend? I think it would be nice to see them."
Taehyung's fingers stilled.
His lips pressed into a thin line as he slowly looked up again, his dark eyes locking onto Jungkook's expectant face. The faint trace of hope in those wide, brown eyes irritated him—because it shouldn't be there.
"We're not going anywhere," Taehyung said, his tone cool and emotionless. "You have class, and I have work."
The rejection, though expected, made something inside Jungkook curl painfully.
He lowered his gaze, shoulders slumping slightly as he whispered, "Okay."
Without another word, he turned and walked away, the sound of his footsteps fading into the silence.
Taehyung exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair before returning his focus to his laptop. This was for the best.
It had to be.
Jungkook sat cross-legged on the massive bed in his bedroom, surrounded by textbooks and notes. His hands rested on the open pages, but his mind was miles away.
He couldn't stop thinking about the cold exchange with Taehyung.
The way the Alpha barely looked at him.
The way he dismissed him like an inconvenience.
This marriage was never his choice. But that didn't mean he hadn't hoped—hoped that maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be this unbearable.
His fingers curled into the sheets as he inhaled deeply, his own Omega scent faint but restless. He could feel his body's instincts protesting against the unnatural distance between him and his mate.
This wasn't how bonded mates were supposed to be.
But Taehyung had made it painfully clear that he had no interest in acknowledging their connection.
Jungkook exhaled slowly, trying to push awaythe ache in his chest. He didn't want to care. He didn't want to be affected by Taehyung's coldness.
But no matter how much he fought it—hisOmega still longed for its mate.
The mansion remained silent. The faint ticking of the clock on the wall was the only reminder that time was still moving.
Jungkook tried to sleep, but his body was restless, his instincts unsettled.
Then—
The scent hit him.
Strong, dominant, unmistakable.
An Alpha scent.
Even before Jungkook heard the footsteps outside his door, he felt it.
Taehyung.
His presence, his aura, his sheer existence pressing down on the house like an invisible weight.
Jungkook sat up, breath catching in his throat. His Omega instincts stirred, reacting beforehis rational mind could stop them. His body tensed, his skin prickling with awareness.
He waited.
Maybe—just maybe—Taehyung would knock. Maybe he had come to talk. Maybe he—
The footsteps hesitated.
Jungkook held his breath.
Then, slowly, they continued down the hall.
Fading.
Disappearing.
Jungkook closed his eyes, willing himself to stop feeling so damn disappointed.
Of course, Taehyung wouldn't come.
He never did.
And yet…
Jungkook still wished he would.