All Wooyoung could feel was pain.

Any time he started to regain consciousness, his wolf pulled him away from it to try and protect him.

It hurt too much...

There were times he thought he was dead.

There were times he thought he heard voices nearby, or felt a gentle touch on his face.

But any touch set off the fire within him and he would internally panic.

It didn't take him long to realize he was too weak to move his body... Not that he wanted to.

He kept seeing flashed of what had happened, and it was always followed by searing pain... What Rex had done to him... No alpha in their right mind would do.

But it was obvious that Rex wasn't in his right mind.

Something grazed Wooyoung's arm and he whimpered and flinched away from it. He didn't care how much trouble he would be in later. The last thing he wanted was to be touched by Rex right now... He just wanted some time.

The touch grew, putting more pressure on his arm but it wasn't punishing like Rex would normally be.

It didn't stop him from trying to pull away thought.

But the second he did his body seized in pain and he let out a straggled, raspy, cry.

"Woo. Woo baby it's ok." A familiar voice said and suddenly the omega was blasted with cinnamon.

His eyes flew open and he searched in front of him for the face he needed to see most right now.

It was then that he realized he was laying on his stomach on a strange bed, which shifted below him.

Then everything seemed to freeze as Seonghwa appeared in his line of vision.

Wooyoung had to stare at him for a long moment as he tried to figure out if this was a dream or not.

Seonghwa seemed to understand though, because he reached out slowly and grazed his fingers along Wooyoung's cheek slowly. His forehead creased in concern as Wooyoung flinched away from the touch at first, but he didn't stop.

"Is i-" Wooyoung tried to speak, but his throat was sore his voice cracked instantly and he winced in pain.

"Don't talk. It's ok." Seonghwa whispered.

When the omega's lower lip started to shake, he started to move closer to him, pressing his body against Wooyoung's side and running his hand through the younger's hair.

"It's ok. You're safe."

Wooyoung tried to reach out to him through the mind link so he could talk to him, but he suddenly found his mind very empty. Panic started to rise in him as he tried to figure out what was happening and he tried to move closer to his alpha.

Because he still considered Seonghwa his alpha. Not Rex. Never Rex...

Then he started to look around again, waiting for the moment that Seonghwa would be ripped away from him.

"Youngie, Youngie stop. You're just going to hurt yourself." Seonghwa said quickly, putting pressure on Wooyoung's back to get him to stop moving.

He let out a hoarse whimper in response and looked up at Seonghwa with begging eyes. He just wanted to know what was happening... He felt so scared.

"You're safe. I promise." The alpha whispered, moving close enough so he could connect their foreheads. He lifted his other hand up to run it against Wooyoung's shoulder, and the younger whimpered again when he saw the makeshift cast on it. "I'm ok. It's just a broken wrist.

Wooyoung rocked his head back and forth to nuzzle against Seonghwa's forehead. It felt so good to be next to him again. All he wanted to do was be pulled in tight and stay there, but he had a feeling Seonghwa wasn't doing that for a reason...

"I know baby..." The alpha said, somehow knowing exactly what Wooyoung was thinking even though they weren't linked anymore. "But you need time to heal..." His voice caught in his throat and a tear rolled down his cheek. "I thought I had l-lost you after what h-he did..."

Wooyoung whimpered again and tried to move one more time.

He hissed in pain and Seonghwa immediately tried to stop him, but he was determined. Slowly, he rotated onto his side and pushed through the screaming of his lower half.

Once he was there, he got his wish.

Seonghwa enveloped him in his arms and legs and they both sat there shaking uncontrollably.

Wooyoung wanted to cry, but that felt like too much of an effort even... Just the act of rolling onto his side had completely drained his body and he felt his eyes closing.

"Get some sleep baby." Seonghwa whispered, his deep voice pulling Wooyoung even deeper into his need for sleep. "I'm not going anywhere. I'll be right here when you wake up."

—

When he woke up again, Wooyoung instantly felt the warmth of Seonghwa's arms and couldn't be happier.

He was still in a lot of pain, but it was all eased by the feeling of his alpha next to him.

And the fact that he was still there was proof that Wooyoung wasn't dreaming.

He sighed happily and rubbed his nose back and forth against Seonghwa's chest. The alpha tightened his grip in response, but a low moan came from deep in his throat, indicating that he was still asleep.

Wooyoung smiled as he listened to the slow, even breathing.

The only thing that would make this moment even better was if Wynter was here. But Wooyoung knew he would be seeing her soon.

—

Wooyoung consciousness came and went several times, to the point where he had no idea how long he and Seonghwa were lying together on the bed.

It could have been minutes, hours, or even days.

But his alpha never left his side and he was so grateful.

During one stretch, when he was actually feeling decent, the rest of his pack came in to see him.

San was by his side immediately, hugging him from behind and pressing his face in between his shoulders.

Yeosang sat by his feet and placed a gentle hand on his leg.

The three other alphas stood off to the side. Hongjoong and Mingi had a different look on their face and they avoided looking at Wooyoung for too long.

He understood though, they had to have their own set of mixed emotions on everything that had happened.

A doctor came in to check on Wooyoung periodically to monitor the rate of his healing.

Enough damage had been down that it was going to take several more weeks for him to heal, which also meant he was on an all liquid diet that was enhanced with herbs to make sure he got the nutrients he needed.

He didn't want to stay here that long though...

But Seonghwa was too scared to move him, so they agreed to wait a couple of more days.

Wooyoung tried to tell the others to go home, and he could tell that Mingi wanted to, but one quick look from Yeosang had him agreeing with the others that as hard as it was to stay away from the kids, they would all go home together.

—

A day later, Wooyoung had an unexpected visitor.

It was an older beta from his old pack by the name of Watson. He used to serve under Wooyoung's father as an advisor, so Wooyoung knew him well.

Or used to.

The beta bowed to him and gave him a pained look. "Hello young master, how are you feeling?" His voice shook with age as he studied Wooyoung.

"I'm healing, what do you want Watson?" Wooyoung asked, set off by the word, but also the fact that the old man was just now seeking him out.

"Well... I... I came to see when you want to take up your father's position as head of the pack?"

Seonghwa growled in warning, causing the beta to step back.

Wooyoung just shook his head. "Never."

Watson's eyes widened and he placed a hand over his heart. "But... It's your duty to your pack."

"This isn't my pack anymore Watson. It's hasn't been since my father kicked me out."

"He didn't mean to, he was just upset after what happened... He spent a great deal of time looking for you." Watson bowed his head and his shoulder dropped in defeat.

"Not hard enough." Wooyoung turned to look at Seonghwa, who was glaring at the beta. "Besides, it's not home anymore. I found my home." He added with a whisper.

His alpha's face softened as he turned to look at Wooyoung. They looked at each other for a long moment, and Wooyoung felt like he could get lost in Seonghwa's eyes.

They connected their foreheads again and inhaled deeply, savoring the connection.

"Very well. I will not force you, especially after what happened..." Watson said, the pain evident in his voice.

"Good, because it wouldn't happen anyway." Seonghwa growled, turning to look at him again.

Hearing his alpha get possessive like that made Wooyoung's heart beat faster. He loved it so much and he felt his wolf churning.

"If you want to keep it in the family, I would track down one of my cousins." Wooyoung said, turning to Watson before he left the room. "I know most of them are with different packs so you will have to do some searching, but maybe one of them will help."

"I will do that. Take care of yourself." The beta bowed once, then left the room.

Seonghwa immediately turned back to Wooyoung and claimed his mouth, growling as he did.

At first, Wooyoung wanted to pull away because he saw a flash of Rex with how needy Seonghwa's kiss was, but he pushed through it and soon returned it.

He needed his alpha too. So badly.

The older's chest vibrated as he twisted his fingers in Wooyoung's hair, pressing them closer together for another moment before he pulled away and placed several kisses on his cheeks, forehead, and nose. "I love you." He breathed, continuing the loving motion.

"I love you too, Hwa. Thank you for coming for me." Wooyoung whispered, closing his eyes and smiling at his alpha's actions.

"Always. I know we had a rocky start, but I felt so empty without you baby. I need you now. I need you to function. And you better believe you're not leaving my sight for a long time." Seonghwa chuckled as he connected their foreheads.

"Good. Because I don't want to be away from you. I... I had accepted that I would never get to see you again. And seeing y-you in the h-hall-" Wooyoung's voice caught in his throat.

"Shh, don't go there. It's in the past. He's never going to hurt you again. Never." Seonghwa moved to kiss along his jaw and then down his neck.

Wooyoung shivered at the contact, especially when Seonghwa nipped at where his mark used to be.

The skin there was bare, now that Rex had died, his mark vanished as well.

He tilted his head to the side, practically begging for Seonghwa to mark him again.

The alpha let out a deep, rumbling chuckle. "Once you're healed love." He kissed the spot a couple of times before pulling Wooyoung to him.

****
Written by flamewhipper