The apartment is quieter than usual.

Not empty — never empty with eight alphas around — but softer, like the pack has collectively decided to lower its volume without ever discussing it. The lights are dimmed. The air is warmer. Familiar scents linger heavier than normal, layered and intentional.

You don’t remember deciding to start nesting.

It just… happened.

A blanket pulled closer. A pillow rearranged. Another hoodie claimed without asking. Your body moves on instinct now, guided by something older than logic, and when you finally settle into the corner of your room, the space already feels like it’s closing in around you — safe, enclosed, yours.

The door creaks softly.

Not an intrusion. A question.

Seonghwa pauses in the doorway, eyes immediately flicking to the nest taking shape. He doesn’t smile, doesn’t comment — just exhales quietly, like this confirms something he’s been waiting to see.

“I’ll make it warmer,” he murmurs, already turning away.

Footsteps follow in the hall. Mingi’s voice, hushed but unmistakably him. Yunho’s lower reply. Someone laughs once, then stops themselves. The pack reorganizing in real time.

A few minutes later, Hongjoong knocks — gentle, deliberate.

“Hey,” he says through the door. “Can we come in?”

When you answer, they don’t crowd you.

They never do.

Mingi sets bags down near the wall, eyes bright but careful. “I didn’t know what you’d want, so—” He gestures helplessly at the supplies. “I got options.”

Yunho adjusts the lamp, casting the room in a softer glow. Yeosang slips past without a word, leaving his hoodie folded within reach before settling silently near the window.

San kneels near the edge of the nest, hands braced on his thighs, jaw tight with restraint. “Tell me if it’s too much,” he says quietly. “Anything.”

Wooyoung sits cross-legged on the floor just outside your space, close enough to feel, far enough not to overwhelm. Jongho places a bottle of water near your hand, solid and grounding.

Hongjoong stays standing, watching you — not as a leader, not as an alpha enforcing anything — but as someone who has learned you well.

“You don’t have to do this alone,” he says softly. “You never have.”