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They were fifteen when Jeff noticed something wrong with his best friend. Sometimes Bill became overly sensitive or nitpicking about tiny things he usually didn't care about. During that period, he became more emotional and impulsive than usual. The problem was that Jeff was also affected by his attitude and became instinctive, although his nature was calm.
One day, Bill came over to Jeff's house after school, and as a matter of course, he occupied his bed as if it belonged to him. Then he claimed that the bedding smelled differently because of Jeff's sweat or something. Jeff knew his mother washed his sheets yesterday and was offended by Bill's comment. He told him that it was not his bed but Bill's sense of smell that something was wrong. However, Bill was adamant.
"I'm not saying it's smelly. It just smells different."
"What does that even supposed to mean?"
"I don't know. I think it's your cologne or body odour."
"I don't wear fuckin' cologne. You know that, right?"
"Then what's this smell?"
"You tell me. Why don't you get off of the bed if you don't like that?"
"I like your bed. It's comfier than mine."
Bill shrugged and dropped his eyes onto the magazine he was reading at. It meant he wanted to finish this conversation. Jeff already learnt Bill's gesture when he did or did not want to do something.
Jeff kept watching him flipping pages but stood up to approach his bed, where Bill was lying on his belly.
"Hey, can I ask something personal?" He sat down next to Bill.
"Sure," Bill replied without sparing his attention on him.
"Did you get ABO test?"
Alpha/Beta/Omega test. It was something that every kid was supposed to take around in their early teens. Jeff took it when he was in the seventh grade and was told that he was Alpha. He was also taught that Alpha was sensitive to Omega's smell and verse versa, but it didn't mean anything to him until recently.
"No," Axl replied casually, his eyes still fixed on the page of Queen's new album. "But I was told I'm Alpha."
"By who?"
"My mom. She said I'm Alpha because my dad is."
That didn't mean anything, Jeff thought. Theoretically, ABO was not necessarily hereditary. Even father or mother was Alpha, their kids could be beta, and it was also possible to be Omega. It seemed Bill didn't take PE class, or he must have been sleeping when they taught how ABO works.
"So you don't know that yet, technically. Why don't you take a test?"
"Why?" Bill finally raised his face and looked at Jeff. "Do you think I'm not an Alpha?"
—Yes.
Jeff didn't say that but suspected that might be the case. He had to choose the words not to hurt Bill's feelings. Some people considered Omega inferior as they were prone to hormone balance, but Jeff knew that was the case for Alpha, too.
"Well, it will help you to understand your body constitution. You can take precautionary measures to prevent unwanted pregnancies, and taking a test doesn't harm you."
Jeff provided a perfect textbook answer, but Bill frowned and laughed it off.
"Unwanted pregnancies? What are you talking about? I'm not that stupid to knock up Omega wherever they're in heat."
+ + +
However, things got worse after a few months.
That day Jeff went to school and found Bill's absence. It was rare for him to take a day off as he didn't like staying at home. Jeff thought he might just be skipping school and hanging out somewhere. But he didn't show up the next day again. It made Jeff wonder if something had happened to his friend, so he decided to go to Bill's house after class.
It had been a while since to visit his house because Jeff knew Bill's father always didn't welcome his visit for some reason. He wished he wasn't at home and rang a doorbell. Fortunately, it was his mother who opened the door.
"Hi, Jeff. How are you?"
Sharon seemed a bit surprised by his unannounced visit. She was pretty but looked tired for her age.
"I'm good. Is Bill there?"
"Yes, but he's sick."
"Sick? Is he okay? Can I come in?"
Sharon looked hesitated for a moment but let him in anyways.
As soon as he entered the house, Jeff noticed the characteristic smell all over the place. It was a sweet aroma like a blooming flower, and he recognised what it was. The door of Bill's room was closed, but he could tell the smell was leaking from there.
"Billy, it's me," Jeff knocked on the door.
"Jeff? Come in," Bill answered, and even his voice sounded a bit different.
Jeff opened the door, and a stronger smell directly hit his nose still. Bill was lying on the bed and lifted his head to see Jeff's face. His cheeks were pink, and his blue-green eyes were glazed, which Jeff found somehow charming.
"Hey, what's wrong with you?"
Even though he said so, Jeff was pretty sure Bill was in heat. The more Jeff approached him, the sweeter the smell got. He knelt down at the bedside, feeling like he was in the middle of a rose garden. Jeff knew he was affected by Omega's pheromone but couldn't help getting closer to Bill as if he was a bee being enticed to the nectar of a beautiful flower.
"I don't know. I have a fever, nausea, and headache... you know that shit," Bill said with his head on the pillow.
"Did you go to see a doctor?"
"I hate doctors."
"I know," Jeff touched Bill's forehead, which was far hotter than his normal body temperature. "Did you take medicine at least?"
"Yeah, but those craps don't work. Maybe it's not the normal flu."
Bill looked unusually vulnerable, which made Jeff worried. He knew it was not sick, but Bill seemed to have no idea about what was going on in his body, and it must have been frustrating.
"So, how was the school? Anything happened?"
"Not that much. I was just thinking about you."
As Jeff said so, Bill's cheeks turned pink further.
"Is that why you came? That's sweet of you."
Hearing Bill's soft voice, Jeff also felt his body temperature rise up. He knew he shouldn't be here for so long, but contrary to the reason, he couldn't move his butt. Instead, he bent forward to speak to Bill closer.
"Do you want anything? Can I get you water?"
"No, I just want…" Bill looked up at Jeff and said shily. "Can you place your hand on me again?"
"Hm? Like this?"
Jeff placed his right hand on his forehead again.
"Yeah... feels good," Bill closed his eyes dreamingly.
His skin was hot and just fit perfectly against Jeff's cold palm. Jeff felt like his head also became fuzzy as if he had contracted the same symptom by being near him. Not only that, by watching Bill's cherry lips slightly open, he felt the weird urge to kiss him. Then Bill opened his eyes, their eyes met each other, and Jeff felt his heart start beating faster. When Jeff took another step closer and was about to brush his lips, there was a knock at the door.
"Billy? I made soup. Do you want some?"
Jeff jumped up and turned back towards the door. Sharon just came in with a bowl of chicken soup on a tray. It smelled good to Jeff but not to Bill.
"I don't feel like eating."
"But you should put something in your stomach. You haven't had anything since this morning."
Sharon put the soup on the bedside cabinet, but Bill turned his face away in disgust.
"Your face is a little red, look."
She gently put her hand on her son, who reluctantly looked up at his mother's request.
"Oh my god, it's so hot!" Then Sharon looked at Jeff and said apologetically. "I think you should go home. His fever's getting worse."
"Mom, it's not his fault, and I'm fine," Bill interrupted as he wanted him to stay.
"No, you're not okay. And what if he catches your cold? It's not only about you, Billy."
As Sharon looked genuinely concerned, Bill couldn't deny it any longer. Jeff wanted to say Bill was in heat but swallowed the words.
"Jeff, thanks for coming over today. I'm going to go get an ice bag."
Sharon left the room, and Jeff had no choice but to stand up. Then, Bill pulled him by clutching the hem of his shirt.
"I don't want you to go."
"Billy..."
Jeff didn't want to leave him either but knew he should go.
"I'm sorry my mom talked to you like that. But thank you for coming."
"No, it's okay. Get better soon. You should try that soup."
"But I don't like the smell. It's disgusting."
Seeing Bill shake his head, Jeff suddenly remembered he had candy in his pocket. He put out a light-blue package and showed it to Bill.
"Do you want some?"
"What's that?"
"Mentos."
"Give me one."
He opened his mouth instead of his hand. Jeff thought Bill was acting like a child but peeled off the package and put one into his mouth. His fingertips brushed against his soft lips, and thinking about how it would feel to kiss him, Jeff noticed his lower body react to the thoughts. No doubt, staying in this room any longer would bring humiliation for him.
"See you soon."
"Yeah. At school."
+ + +
The next morning, Jeff went to school and noticed the characteristic flowery smell out of nowhere. With hundreds of students, it was no surprise that some of the Omegas were in heat, but the scent was so distinctive and attracted him particularly. As the sweetness lured him down the hallway, he was surprised to find the redhead boy standing at the locker.
"Hey, Billy? You got better?"
Bill turned around and smiled to see Jeff's face.
"Well, not really. But my dad told me I shouldn't be at home for nothing so long, so I had no choice."
His cheeks were rosy, his body was effusing the scent, and Jeff could tell he was still in heat. He wondered if he should mention that, but before he opened his mouth, the bell rang for the start of class.
"Oh, I gotta go. Mr Smith will yell at me again if I'm late. Can we meet for lunch later?
"Yeah, sure. Take care."
After watching Bill's back running down the hallway, Jeff went to his history class upstairs. As he entered the classroom, a middle-aged teacher glared at him through her thick glasses. Jeff didn't say anything and sat in his usual seat at the back of the room. Having had no interest in history, all he could think about was the redhead boy.
Jeff had never faced any problems in his daily life after being diagnosed as an Alpha. He had learned in PE class that Alpha was instinctively attracted to the smell of Omega in heat, and sometimes it was difficult to control sexual desire. Alpha's sexual misbehaviour towards Omega was a huge social problem, especially for teenagers, and it was strongly recommended that Omega take suppressants to prevent unwanted attention from Alpha. He didn't take it seriously at that time, but after returning from Bill's house yesterday, Jeff found himself getting a boner and had to take care of it. It wasn't that he wanted to do something about Bill, but his body knew how to react to the Omega ready to mate.
Jeff couldn't concentrate at all, and after finishing his morning classes, he went to the cafeteria to wait for Bill. Other students began to gather, and it got crowded more and more. However, Jeff couldn't see the redhead, who was supposed to stand out a lot. Worried that his symptom might've worsened, Jeff left the cafeteria and looked for him in the infirmary or the classroom. Although he was nowhere to be seen, Jeff noticed the flowery smell again coming from the end of the hallway. He felt like he had become a dog and followed the scent that belonged to Bill for sure. It came from the gymnasium and became stronger when Jeff entered the building. At the same time, Bill's voice could be heard from the storage room, and Jeff rushed to open the heavy metal door.
"...the fuck!?"
The first thing that caught Jeff's attention was white. And it didn't take him long to realise it was Bill's bare body.
Bill was stripped of his clothes, and two boys were holding him down by his arms and legs. They turned back at the noise, and Jeff found they were the students in an upper grade who always targeted Bill for bullying. Bill also faced up to see Jeff but was unable to move under the taller boy.
They yelled something at Jeff, but he couldn't hear anything. Jeff saw red in the scene and kicked the boy covering Bill's body away. He kicked his flank again, and the boy groaned, hitting his head hard against the vaulting horse nearby. Then another boy pushed Jeff down onto the floor, and Jeff fought him back, flipping the metal basket full of volleyball toward him. Jeff pushed the heavy basket so hard, and the metal bar hit the boy's shin directly. While the two of them were struggling to stand up, Jeff helped Bill to dress quickly, grabbed him by the arm, and ran out of the gymnasium.
Bringing Bill to the back of the school building, Jeff sat down on the concrete, panting to catch up his breath. His heart was still racing as the sight of a naked Bill and the boy covering him burned in his mind.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Jeff looked at Bill worriedly. Bill sat down next to him, facing down and looking at the chest of his shirt.
"Yeah, but I'd be scolded again."
"What are you talking about?"
"My shirt. They ripped my button off, and it went somewhere. I can't get a new one..."
He said as if it was the most worrying thing in the entire world, and Jeff felt his suppressed anger rising again.
"It's not about the fuckin' shirt! It's about you!"
Startled by his outburst, Bill finally looked at Jeff's face. Seeing that his bottom lip was cut, Bill suddenly got upset.
"Shit, you're bleeding!"
Jeff waved off Bill's hand trying to touch his lips.
"I just bit myself when that bastard pushed me from behind."
"It looks hurt."
"I'm fine. I'm asking about you. What happened?"
Bill bit his lips and looked away from him. Jeff waited patiently until he slowly started to talk.
"I was sitting and watching at PE class as I wasn't feeling well. After the class, about to go to the cafeteria, I noticed I didn't change my gym shoes. So I went back to the gym and bumped into those assholes. They said I was stinky."
"What?"
"They told me I smelled terrible because I was an Omega in heat. I said I wasn't, but one of them said he could tell because he was an Alpha. I challenged him by saying that was bullshit, and it made him mad. He said he could prove it if I followed him, and they took me to the storage room."
"How could you—" be so reckless. Jeff wanted to say but hold it.
"It's weird to say, but I couldn't resist him once he pinned me down. My body couldn't fight back even though I wanted. I wasn't scared but just couldn't understand what was going on. They stripped me and said I was a shameless Omega begging for Alpha's cock. Then I saw him getting hard-on..."
Jeff watched Bill's profile at a loss for words.
"So...eh...did he...?"
He was too afraid to finish the sentence. He wanted to ask but felt like he didn't want to hear the answer. Bill didn't notice his inner conflict and continued.
"I guess he tried to, but then you came. So I should say thank you, right?"
Seeing Bill smile awkwardly, Jeff was hit by a wave of huge relief. He covered his face with his palm and gave a heavy sigh.
"God, I thought you were..."
"You got worried?
"Yeah. I thought I might kill them."
It was close, indeed. The gush of rage took over his body in a second, and all he could say was that Alpha's instinct reacted.
"You're also an Alpha, aren't you? Do you think I'm stinky?"
Bill tilted his head to see Jeff's expression.
"Well... you're not, but..."
"But?"
"Let's say your smell distracts me a lot."
"What do you mean?" Bill looked at him suspiciously.
"I mean... I think," He searched for a better word, but there was none to come up with. "I think you're an Omega and in heat, too."
Bill made a face like he didn't know what he was being told.
"But I told you, I'm an Alpha."
"Billy, I know you think you're an Alpha because your dad is, but that's not always the case. It doesn't matter whether your parents are Alpha or not."
Bill frowned at Jeff's words, not yet to be convinced.
"But then why would my mom lie to me? She's an Omega, and why can't she just take me to the doctor?"
"I don't know. But maybe she also wants to think you're an Alpha. Some people think Alpha is superior to others, although that's not the case."
Bill was still reluctant to admit he was an Omega but had an idea of what Jeff was talking about.
"So... what should I do?"
"Well...I think you may want to take a test."
"I don't want to see doctors."
"You don't have to. You can buy the test kit at the pharmacy. Why don't we go together if you like?"
So, they skipped the afternoon class and headed to the pharmacy. Bill didn't have enough money to buy the test kit, so Jeff offered to lend him some, but it turned out that Jeff only had some coins in his pocket today. After all, Jeff caught people's attention while Bill snatched the kit and put it in his pocket, and they left the store pretending nothing had happened.
As usual, Jeff's mother was away for her work, and they were alone in the house. Jeff sat on his bed and waited for Bill, who disappeared into the bathroom with the test kit. He knew the results were almost certain to be Omega, but Bill might get upset and complain that such a test was bullshit.
However, when Bill came back to the room, he was calm, contrary to Jeff's expectations.
"How did it go?"
Jeff asked, and Bill silently held out the result in front of Jeff's eyes. There was indeed a line on "O", indicating that he was an Omega. Bill sat down next to Jeff, his expression unchanged.
"Does that mean I could get pregnant?
"...In theory, yes."
"Fuck. I don't want to."
"You can take a pill to prevent—"
"Fuck no!" Bill threw away the kit. "Why should I take a pill or whatever for random stupid irresponsible Alpha? Why don't they castrate instead!?"
"Ha. That makes sense..."
Jeff almost laughed, but Bill was serious.
"You know what, I don't want to take suppressants either. I can't afford to."
"But then you attract Alpha's attention regardless of whether you want it or not. And it makes you vulnerable."
"Only when I'm in heat, right?"
"I guess so."
"How often will that happen?"
Now Bill suddenly got interested in the basic knowledge about Omega's body, and Jeff tried to remember what he had learnt in class a few years ago.
"Uh... it depends on the person. Usually once in a season, four times in a year. When did you get sick last time? I mean, have you ever experienced the same symptoms before?"
"I don't think so. I caught the flu last winter, but it was different. Maybe this is the first time for me to be in heat."
Bill looked anxious, having no idea to deal with it but relied on his friend, who was an Alpha. Jeff stood up to pick up the kit that Bill had thrown on the floor and tossed it in the bin.
"The good thing is it's not sick. Your body is just reacting to the mating cycle."
Bill kept his eyes down on the floor, chewing his nails restlessly. Jeff sat on the bed again and patted his back, trying to soothe him. He felt his body heat up a little just being next to him like this, but Bill seemed to calm down when Jeff was touching his body. Then he looked at Jeff's face, and their eyes met in a close range.
"I've got an idea."
"Like what?" Jeff responded softly, without expecting what was coming next.
"Why don't you be my Alpha?"
"That's a good i—what??"
"I said, you should become my Alpha."
Bill's eyes were sparkling, and Jeff's were shifting.
"What do you mean by your Alpha?"
"I just want you to be with me. I'm feeling better when you are close."
"Ehm... I don't know about that... I mean, how could I always be with you when you are in those periods?"
The more Jeff tried to step back, the closer Bill moved toward him.
"I'm not saying you should stay with me all day. I just want you to be around me when I need you. Then you can protect me like today."
"So you're saying I'm a substitute for suppressants? Because you can't afford to buy it, and I'm free?"
"Oh, so you prefer me to get arrested for stealing stupid medicine every time I get in heat?"
"Billy, come on," Jeff put his hand on his forehead and let out a sigh. "Stop acting like I'm the reason for you to be in jail."
"But that might actually happen if you won't let me."
Bill certainly had a point. He couldn't even afford a new shirt, and there would be no way he could buy expensive drugs.
"Why don't you tell your mom? She'll find it out anyway..."
"I don't want to disappoint her. And my dad would kick me out if he knew I'm an Omega."
Bill was desperate, and Jeff couldn't come up with any practical solution to it other than him to protect the redhead princess.
"Alright. All I have to do is kick some Alpha's ass trying to get you every three months or so, right?"
"Right. Deal?"
Bill held out his hand, and Jeff reluctantly grasped it.
"Deal."
"Great!"
Jeff looked back at Bill's smile with mixed feelings. Honestly, he didn't mind being with him when he needed, as it had always been. His concern was that someday he might do the same things as the two boys tried to do to Bill. He wasn't confident to suppress his desire when he was around a pretty Omega who wouldn't take suppressants. As a matter of fact, he was already getting thirsty after being with him in the same room for a while.
Unaware of Jeff's feelings, Bill laid down on the bed, took Jeff's pillow, and looked like he was about to start napping. The sweet smell he produced would stick to his bed sheets, and that meant Jeff wouldn't get a good sleep tonight. On the contrary, Bill yawned and looked up at him with half-lid eyes.
"Your bed is so comfy and makes me sleepy. Wanna sleep together?"
Jeff rolled his eyes at his defenceless behaviour and wondered if he really understood he was an Alpha, too.
"I'll get something to drink. Do you want some?"
"Nope."
Bill was already curled up in the sheets, closing his eyes.
"Fine..."
Jeff left the room and escaped downstairs to chill out. Already he was beginning to regret what he signed up for. He wondered if his reason could beat Bill's temptation or if he would end the friendship by messing him around. Either way, it would certainly be some kind of torture for him.