Work Text:
When Alex gets home from work, the first thing he notices is the absence of Henry in their usual living room or kitchen spaces. It doesn’t take him long to figure out where his meticulous omega boyfriend is. He kicks off his shoes by the door, tosses his bag onto the counter, and follows the faint sound of soft meowing to the small walk-in closet they’ve designated as the “kitten room.”
Henry is sitting on the floor, legs tucked primly beneath him, back straight, and hands resting neatly on his lap. His shirt sleeves are rolled up just enough to expose his forearms, which Alex finds unfairly attractive given the circumstances. Henry’s posture is so proper that it seems comically at odds with their surroundings: a modest closet now filled with a small cat tree, a few blankets, some scattered toys, and a makeshift feeding station in the corner.
Two of the kittens are curled up in the bed Henry’s set up, while the third—the most adventurous of the litter—is perched precariously atop the cat tree, batting at a dangling toy. At least, it was, until Alex bursts into the room with all the grace and volume of a freight train.
“Baby! I’m home!” Alex announces, dropping to his knees next to Henry like it’s the most natural thing in the world. His sudden entrance startles the kittens, sending them scurrying behind the safety of the tree and Henry’s legs.
Henry sighs softly, a long-suffering but deeply fond sound. “Must you be so loud?”
“Always,” Alex replies without hesitation, plopping down so that his shoulder bumps lightly against Henry’s. “How’s kitten watch going?”
“Peaceful, until about five seconds ago,” Henry mutters, his voice tinged with dry humor. “Though they’re adjusting well. I’ve rearranged the room slightly to make it more suitable for their needs.”
Alex follows Henry’s gaze to the kittens, who are peeking out cautiously from their hiding spots. He grins wide and leans in closer to Henry, who doesn’t move away, though his posture relaxes in response to Alex’s proximity. It’s a phenomenon Alex finds endlessly entertaining: no matter how long they’ve been together, Henry still reacts to him like Alex’s presence is something to be endured and cherished all at once.
“How was work?” Henry asks, his tone casual but his eyes flickering briefly toward Alex’s face.
“Boring as hell,” Alex replies, dramatically flopping onto his back as if the weight of the day has finally taken its toll. “Oh! Speaking of exciting news, I had an interesting interaction today. You, my dear, have a very chatty impersonator on instagram.”
Henry blinks, his expression remaining neutral but his confusion clear in the slight tilt of his head. “I beg your pardon?”
“You know,” Alex says, gesturing vaguely as if this is the most obvious thing in the world. “One of those fake profiles that pretends to be you so they can scam people. This guy was *really* dedicated. Sent me a friend request and everything.”
Henry stares at him, his mouth opening slightly before closing again, no doubt trying to process the sheer absurdity of Alex’s statement. “Why on earth would you accept a friend request from someone impersonating me?”
Alex waves off the question like it’s unimportant. “I had to see what they were about, obviously. For science.”
“For science,” Henry echoes flatly.
“Exactly! Anyway, so I messaged him, right? To, like, gauge his vibe.”
Henry pinches the bridge of his nose in the exact way he does when he’s trying to summon every ounce of patience he possesses. “Let me ensure I understand this correctly. You—knowing full well this was someone impersonating me—decided to engage with them.”
“Yep.”
“To ‘gauge their vibe.’”
“Also yep.”
Henry exhales sharply, but Alex can see the faintest twitch of amusement at the corner of his mouth. “And what, pray tell, did you discover about their…vibe?”
“Well,” Alex begins, shifting so that he’s sitting cross-legged in front of Henry, practically vibrating with excitement. “He started by messaging me this whole paragraph about how he’s ‘the real Henry,’ which, like, bold choice considering *you’re* sitting right here. But then it gets better—he says he’s fallen on hard times and needs my help.”
Henry raises a single eyebrow. “He asked you for money.”
“Not just money,” Alex says, his grin widening. “Credit card details. He got very specific.”
“Of course he did,” Henry mutters, his voice dripping with dry sarcasm. “And what was your response to this blatant attempt at identity theft?”
“I gave him some tips,” Alex says proudly.
Henry blinks. “You what?”
“Helpful tips!” Alex clarifies, as if that makes it better. “Like, if you’re gonna impersonate the Omega Prince of England, at least spell ‘Mountchristen’ correctly, you know? I also told him he should probably use better grammar if he wants to sound posh, because no offense, baby, but your text messages read like something out of a Jane Austen novel.”
There’s a long pause as Henry processes this, his expression torn between exasperation and incredulity. “You were giving tips,” he says slowly, “to the person trying to commit identity theft.”
“Yeah! But I think he thought I was flirting with him?” Alex says, scratching the back of his neck sheepishly. “Because then he started, like, complimenting me? He said I had a ‘warm aura,’ whatever that means.”
Henry stares at Alex, his lips parted slightly in disbelief. Then, against all odds, a small, breathy laugh escapes him, so soft and unexpected that Alex almost doesn’t catch it. But when he does, he feels like he’s just won the lottery.
“You’re unbelievable,” Henry says, shaking his head, but there’s no real annoyance in his tone. If anything, he sounds almost fond.
“I know,” Alex replies, leaning in to nudge Henry’s shoulder with his own. “That’s why you love me.”
Henry doesn’t respond immediately, but the faint flush creeping up his neck speaks volumes. Alex grins, knowing he’s hit his mark. They sit in comfortable silence for a moment, the kittens slowly venturing back out from their hiding spots now that the commotion has settled.
“You’re not going to keep messaging him, are you?” Henry asks eventually, his tone a mix of caution and resigned amusement.
Alex shrugs. “Depends. If he’s funny, maybe.”
“Alex.”
“Fine, fine,” Alex says, throwing his hands up in mock surrender. “I’ll block him. But only because you asked nicely.”
Henry rolls his eyes, but there’s a small smile playing on his lips as he turns his attention back to the kittens. Alex watches him for a moment, his heart swelling with affection for this ridiculous, proper, infuriatingly perfect man who somehow puts up with all of his chaos.
And as one of the kittens climbs onto Henry’s lap, earning a soft laugh from the prince, Alex thinks to himself that there’s no one else he’d rather come home to.