Jongho sighed as he once again tossed and turned during the night.

He had spend all evening trying to decide how to tell San and Yunho that his wolf had picked it's Luna, and he hadn't done anything to fight it. And he still didn't even fully know why it had picked Wooyoung.

But he was a coward... The words had frozen in his throat so many times and all he could do was stare at his food and eat slowly.

Mingi had to know by now. There was no way Seonghwa would hide this from him. Not when Mingi had been giving him 'the Luna talk' for several days now.

The alpha groaned and pushed himself off the floor to make his way over to the shower. The sun was peeking over the trees, so he figured he might as well just get up, and a cold shower sounded like a good idea.

Maybe it would freeze his wimpy heart and give him the courage to tell the others.

As soon as he touched the cold water, though, he instantly regretted it and turned the dials so that he was blasted with hot water.

Jongho let out a little groan as the warmth surrounded him, relaxing him. He ran his hands over his body, squeezing and massaging his sore muscles and just tried to enjoy himself.

It worked. So well, in fact, he didn't notice someone walking up behind him and slipping into the shower until it was too late.

A pair of thin arms wrapped around his waist and San's head appeared over his shoulder. "Good morning Alpha." The older hummed.

Jongho jumped a little, but his wolf recognized San instantly so he wasn't scared enough to make a sound. Although his heart did start to race. "S-San! Did I wake you up?"

"No. I was already awake, so I wanted some alone time with you." He purred, kissing along the alpha's shoulder and neck, having luckily picked the side that didn't have Jongho's mark.

But he knew he wouldn't be able to hide it for long.

Jongho felt his chest tighten and he lifted a hand to it.

San stopped his administrations and looked at him with worry. "Jongho? What's wrong?"

The younger's mouth opened and closed several times before he leaned into the wall. He was having a panic attack. There was no other way to describe it as he started to gasp for air. All he could think about was how much he had messed up. Then the thoughts of being a poor alpha flew through his head.

"Jongho, Jongho, calm down!" San wedged himself between Jongho and the wall. He cupped the younger's face and started to place gentle kisses along his face. They went down one side, then the other.

The alpha felt his knees start to shake when San pulled away, his eyes locked on Jongho's neck. He could feel the confusion rolling off his beta. It slowly turned into a mix of pain, hurt, worry, and even a slight note of acceptance.

"S-San..." Jongho choked out, trying to reach for the beta, but he couldn't get his limbs to move.

The older swallowed and clenched his fists at his side. "When?" He wouldn't even look at Jongho. But then he shook his head. "I can't..." He stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around himself. "We both deserve to hear it at the same time." San's voice was low and he did nothing to hide the pain he was feeling before he left the bathroom.

Jongho finally made a sound, letting a sob tear from his throat while he sank to the shower floor. This is the exact reason why he didn't want to choose a Luna. Why did that have to be one of the instincts of a wolf? Why couldn't things have just stayed like they were? They had been happy... right?

It didn't take long for his mate to sense his pain and come running into the bathroom, but by then the water had turned cold.

Wooyoung let out a whimper and pulled Jongho from the shower before reaching over to turn the water off. He scrambled to wrap his alpha in several towels and rubbed his arms and legs furiously, trying to get heat to return to his body.

Neither one spoke, for they knew what the other was feeling.

Wooyoung was just as anxious now, and he kept glancing at the door with red, partially swollen eyes, telling Jongho that San must have either done or said something to the omega to set him off.

When the shivering finally stopped, Wooyoung helped the younger get dressed. They stood there for a long moment, not sure what to do.

But then Jongho sensed one thought fly across his omega's mind that broke his heart. He immediately pulled Wooyoung to him and held him close. "No." He whispered into Wooyoung's hair.

He felt Wooyoung fist the back of his shirt. "I will never regret my decision."

The older's shoulders started to shake while small whimpers escaped his lips.

"We will get through this, somehow." The alpha continued, pushing aside his own pain to comfort his mate. He didn't like seeing the other in pain and he wanted to make it go away.

They stood there for a long moment, both knowing they were delaying the inevitable. So Jongho took a deep breath and kissed the mark he had left on Wooyoung's neck, loving the way the older shivered at the touch, before lacing their fingers together.

Slowly, they made their way into the living room. Both betas were sitting on the couch with their arms crossed. Neither one would look up from the floor and Yunho was sucking furiously on his bottom lip.

"Before you say anything, this isn't how I wanted you to find out. I was planning on telling you today once you were all awake..." Jongho said, rubbing the back of his head with his free hand.

When tensions seemed to rise, Wooyoung bowed his head and stepped away until his back was pressed against the wall.

The loss of contact hurt and Jongho almost demanded that he come back. But he didn't.

Instead, he fell to his knees so that he was the lowest one in the room. This action earned San's attention at least.

"I'm sorry." He whispered. "I have no excuse or wild story to claim. All I can say is I trusted what my wolf wanted. It was like a moment of clarity that happened in an instant and I went for it. I won't apologize for that part, because I would have done the same thing for either of you. But I am truly, deeply sorry for the pain that I have caused you... I didn't want to hurt any of you and that's why I kept pushing it off. You are all so special to me." Jongho found himself searching for Yunho's attention, feeling that the older beta was in the most pain.

But Yunho wouldn't look at him. His shoulders shook and he closed his eyes. Betrayal. That was the main emotion that rolled off him. For the first time, Jongho felt fear creep into his heart. Maybe this was why his father had chosen a mate for Mingi before his brother started a pack... No... This is exactly why. When too many emotions got involved it just created even more hurt.

Jongho felt like he needed to do something, so he got up and walked over so that he was kneeling in front of the beta. He reached up to take Yunho's hands and looked up, but the other still had his eyes closed.

"I promise, it's nothing against you. Please, Yunho, please look at me." His voice quivered as he spoke. "Please, I still need you. I need all of you. You make me want to be a better alpha. I can't do this without you."

The beta sniffed a few times, then finally opened his eyes. Nothing but pain filled them. Then he stood and walked out the front door without a backward glance.

Jongho felt him shift and run into the forest. He turned and look at San, starting to feel desperate. San sighed and ran a hand through his green hair, ruffling it a little. "Give him time. And give me time too."

"Sannie..." Wooyoung said from where he was standing against the wall.

"Don't, Youngie." The beta glanced at him. "I promise I'm not mad at either of you. We all knew one of us would be chosen at some point, and that the other two were going to be hurt. It's no one's fault." Now he looked at Jongho. "It's no one's fault." He repeated.

Jongho felt his chest constrict at the words. Then he watched as San gave Wooyoung a small smile and walked out of the house to follow Yunho.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the front door right before Mingi stepped inside. He hurried to Jongho's side and knelt next to him.

The younger didn't need to say anything. His brother automatically pulled him into his arms. He shushed Jongho softly while rocking him back and forth.

For the first time in years, Jongho let himself fall into his brother's embrace and willingly took the attention and love. He let his brother comfort him and whisper that everything was going to be alright.

••••••••

Written by flamewhipper