Chapter Text
Ω
Grabbing a cloth from underneath the counter, Kai quickly reached over the bar and swabbed up the dregs spilled from people’s drinks. Mostly beer, whiskey and vodka, it would get sticky if he let it dry. Not that anyone would notice, they were all too busy enjoying their drinks to care that their glass stuck slightly when they picked them up, but Kai hated picking up sticky coins when people put their money on the bar instead of in his hand. As soon as he’d started cleaning, Rob had already returned for another round.
“Another three pints, beautiful.” He called over the chatter.
“Coming right up.” Kai replied, with the little grin that he’d been perfecting. He was getting better, if his tips were anything to go by. “You got through that last round pretty quick.” He said as he began preparing their drinks.
“What can I say,” Rob replied. “We’re thirsty tonight.” He chuckled.
“I can see.” Kai smiled. Rob was one of the regulars at The Draught Horse. He’d come in most evenings, usually with one or two of his colleagues. Some nights, he’d only buy one pint and be gone after an hour. Others, he'd be there for hours, drinking way into the night. Kai didn't mind, he liked Rob. His stories were often a little dull, and he'd tried to get Kai's number on his first night. But once Kai had made it clear he wasn't interested, he'd stuck to just a little hint of flirting, which Kai could deal with. Besides, it meant he was always fairly nice and he gave good tips, which was more than could be said for some other patrons.
"Here you are." Kai said, as he presented three glasses to Rob. Before he even needed to say the price, Rob held out a twenty note.
"Buy yourself a drink.” Rob added with a wink. “And keep the change."
"Thanks." Kai said, turning to the till, putting in the note and slipping the change into his pocket, before pouring himself a shot. He wasn’t expecting his objective until tomorrow, so he figured he could enjoy himself a little bit.
His objective was a boring enough man. Kai had seen him in person once before, but it had been too early for him to realise who he was after. It was only once he’d used the bar’s security cameras, and cross-referenced with the card records and the information he’d been given that he worked out who he was. Kai was still annoyed at himself, he would’ve been able to cut the job short by two weeks. But he came in every other Thursday night for a few drinks.
As Kai was taking small sips from his shot, Erin walked back into the bar. She was the second bartender for that evening. “Good pee?” He asked, jokingly.
Erin rolled her eyes at him, smiling. “Nice enough, if you must know.” She said, goodnaturedly. She was a friendly woman, only a few years older than Kai. She liked to talk, a lot, and could hold a conversation on any topic, however bland. At first Kai had disliked it, finding the first conversation he’d had with her quite boring, since he didn’t particularly care what shade of green she was having her living room painted. But as they’d worked together, he’d begun to appreciate her. Her ability to hold a conversation on her own meant Kai didn’t have to respond too much. He could just nod and make agreeing noises, and she’d keep the conversation going. The less he said, the less he had to keep track of, after all.
Besides, Erin was often only trying to help. She would often fret over the smallest things, but it was usually out of concern. Much like how she was fretting to Kai now, about leaving him alone to serve. “Everything was okay, wasn’t it?” She asked him, worried.
“Yeah, it was fine.” Kai replied, simply.
“I tried to hurry, but I was really desperate.” She continued. “I was worried about you being all alone out here. Who knows what could’ve happened!”
“Like what?” Kai asked, chuckling. “I’ve been doing this for several weeks now, I know how to pull a pint.”
“I’m not talking about that.” Erin huffed. She came a little closer and hushed her voice. “I just worry about you when there are alphas in.” She looked over her shoulder out to the main floor of the bar. “What if one of them gets the wrong idea?”
Kai looked at Erin, bemused. So far, he’d been there three weeks and the closest shave they’d had was when an alpha had asked Kai out to dinner, which Kai had politely declined, and he’d kicked a stool in frustration on his way out, snapping its footrest off. Even on the busiest of Friday nights, they rarely had more than three alphas in, most were respectful enough to accept Kai’s rejection. And the ones that weren’t were quickly dealt with by Max, the security guard.
“I know how to deal with alphas.” He told Erin, not unkindly. “I’m used to them.”
“Still,” Erin replied. “I don’t trust them.”
As Erin was speaking, Edward, the bar’s owner, poked his head out from the backroom, right as a patron walked up to the bar, looking at them expectantly. Edward looked irritated. “You two.” He called at them. “I don’t pay you to stand around, drinking and gossiping.”
“Sorry.” Erin and Kai both replied. Erin hurried up to the patron and began taking his order. Kai quickly surveyed the bar, seeing if anyone else was coming up for a drink. No one else seemed to be, so he leant back against the counter again.
“That includes you.” Edward aimed at him, pointedly. Kai opened his mouth to protest, but Edward cut him off. “If you’ve got no one to serve, go collect empty glasses.” He said, gesturing to the rest of the bar.
Kai suppressed the urge to scowl, downed the last of his shot, then placed his glass with the other dirty ones and went to do as he was told. He picked up a glass carrier and headed out onto the floor. It wasn’t too busy, but it wasn’t quiet either. He quickly scanned around the room, working out how he should go about collecting the glasses. In one of the booths in the corner, three men had amassed a large collection of glasses between them. He decided he’d go back to them, and began circling around the bar. Rob and his friends stood chatting at a high table as Kai walked over. He quietly picked up the three empty glasses that were sat in front of them. They thanked him as he did, before returning to their conversation.
Next, Kai walked over to the pool table where the local pool club was holding their meeting, they were in the middle of playing a game. He’d learnt that they went to different bars each week, but they came regularly to The Horse, because Edward would give them each a pint on the house and reserve the table for them if they booked in advance. Kai only had one empty to collect, but he lingered for a moment. He wiped down a table with a napkin as he watched one of them take a rather impressive shot. The rest of the club gave them a small round of applause, with Kai joining in for a moment before continuing on around the bar. Once his carrier was full, Kai quickly dropped the glasses off behind the bar, before returning out to deal with the mountain of empties in the corner booth.
“Evening, gents.” He said cheerfully, as he started picking up empty glasses and slotting them into the carrier.
One smiled, and returned his greeting. “Hey there, sweetie.” His words were slurred and from his general manner, Kai could tell he was quite drunk. Hardly unsurprising, given quite how many empty glasses Kai was collecting up. He was smiling up at Kai, obviously enjoying his presence. Kai didn’t mind too much, he’d got used to drunk people not knowing how to stop themselves leering an omega. Besides, his face was suited to smiling. Kai smiled back at him as he leant over the table, to collect the glasses on the far side of the table.
Suddenly he stopped dead, as he felt a hand groping his arse, squeezing. He straightened up immediately, stepping away from the encroaching hand and turning to face its owner. From his size, Kai guessed that he was an alpha. He was darker skinned than his friend, with jet black hair. Under other circumstances, Kai wouldn’t have called him ugly. But the way those dark eyes were regarding him, raking up and down, lingering at his crotch, it made the hairs on the back of Kai’s neck stand on end.
“I’ll show you a good time.” The alpha said, with a voice that sounded like he ate gravel for breakfast. It set Kai on edge. He took another step back from the alpha, immediately glancing around for ways he could defend himself.
“Excuse me, sir.” He said, nervously, as he quickly tried to gather up the rest of the empty glasses, hurriedly slotting them into the carrier. It was then that he heard a low growl coming from the alpha. He hadn’t been asking.
Kai decided the rest of the glasses could be damned, he quickly snatched up the half-full carrier and started rushing back to the bar. Behind him, he could hear the alpha getting up from his seat.
“Dude, don’t.” The smiling one cautioned.
“I’m not getting involved with this crap.” He heard the other man who’d been sitting with them say. Rushing even faster, Kai was practically running by the time he got back to the bar. He dumped the carrier down unceremoniously on the side, grimacing as he heard a glass crack, but he had bigger concerns right then.
Kai whirled around, to see the dark alpha standing at the entrance to the bar, blocking any chance of escaping that way. “Come on, baby. You come with me, my ride’s just outside.” He said, grinning, his gaze transfixed on Kai.
“I’m sorry, sir.” Kai said, beginning to back away. “I’m not interested.”
The alpha’s expression turned from lust to anger. “I wasn’t askin’.” He snarled. He went to grab Kai’s shoulder, but he was too slow and lacked coordination. Kai quickly stepped back and twisted away, leaving the alpha grasping at empty air. As he backed away, Kai took note of the lemon and lime slices a little further down the bar and, more importantly, the knife with them.
He backed further into the bar with the alpha following, stepping behind the bar, stalking Kai. From behind him, Erin piped up. She came to stand beside Kai and offer support. “Sir,” she started, her voice slightly shaky with nerves. “You’re not supposed to …” She trailed off as the alpha growled at her, and fixed her with a glare. Carefully, Kai brought his hand up and gently pushed Erin back and behind him, never taking his eyes off the dark alpha in front of him.
The alpha noticed Kai’s defensiveness, and began slowing his pursuit. “Come here, you little runt.” He snarled, going to try and grab Kai again. Kai responded in turn with his own growl. It wasn’t as deep or as loud as the alpha’s, but it was enough for him to stop and consider. He reached out again, and Kai darted backwards, out of the alpha’s reach. Luckily, the alpha had over-extended and was left flailing around for a moment. Kai took advantage of the alpha’s distraction, quickly reaching over and grabbing the knife, hiding the blade behind his arm, drawing a nervous squeak from Erin when she saw. He began calculating how best to fight the alpha in the confines of the bar. There wasn’t enough room for his usual acrobatics, but the alpha was drunk enough that simple dodging would likely work. But the knife was only short, so he’d have a difficult time stabbing deep enough to disable him, he’d need to aim for the neck rather than the body if he would have a chance …
Suddenly, a voice cut through the tension. “I wouldn’t do that, if I were you!” It said, calm but strong. Kai froze whilst the dark alpha turned around to comprehend the new voice behind him, blocking Kai’s view of the new person, his knight-in-shining-armour.
“Get outta here,” that dark alpha told the knight. “He’s mine!” The alpha began slowly approaching the knight, drawing himself up to his full height.
“He told you he wasn’t interested.” The knight replied. “So no, he’s not.” Kai could hear a touch more aggravation in his voice this time. The two of them continued edging out of the bar. Kai quickly placed the knife back on the cutting board and moved to get a look at the knight. He was another alpha, taller than the dark one but not as stocky, more fit. He was also nowhere near as intoxicated, either he was sober or he handled his drink better.
“What do you care?” The dark alpha snarled, squaring up against the knight as he stood in the gap between the bar and the main floor. “You his mate or something?”
The knight didn’t bother answering. “You ought to go, and leave this omega alone.” He said, nodding to the door behind him. “Now.” he punctuated his words with a glare and a brief growl.
“Or what?” The dark alpha retorted, menacingly. “You gonna make me?” He squared up to the knight with a horrible tension developing in the bar. Everyone had fallen silent, staring at the two alphas challenging one another. After a moment, the dark alpha spat towards the knight, with the gob falling to the ground at his feet.
The next moment, he lunged forward and drove the knight backwards into a table with a loud crash, his shout of surprise accompanied by the sound of smashing glasses. Kneeing him in the chest, the knight threw the dark alpha off him, and the two began circling each other in the centre of the bar. “Take it outside.” Several bystanders shouted at them, as people moved away from them, though one man was cheering and egging them on, clearly enjoying the fight.
As they circled each other, the dark alpha made several attempts to punch the knight, but whatever fighting ability he might’ve had at the beginning of the night had been leached from him by the booze. Most of his punches missed by several inches or more and he kept losing his balance, leaving him floundering for an age. The knight was clearly holding himself back, dodging from side to side with ease. He allowed the dark alpha to attempt a couple of punches, before he began to defend himself. He threw one quick punch to the dark alpha’s stomach and another to his throat, leaving the alpha winded and gasping for air as he fell to his knees. The knight looked down at him indignantly, his hands falling to his side as he regarded the wheezing wreck of a man at his feet.
As dark alpha went down, Edward appeared from his office in the back, drawn out by the commotion and just in time to watch the knight dominate the dark alpha. At the same time, Max rushed in from outside, ready to intervene. Kai simply watched on, his mouth hanging open in disbelief.
“What’s going on?!” Edward shouted, drawing most of the bar’s attention.
“Not tonight, lads.” Max said sternly as he ran between the two alphas, pushing the knight away. He simply stepped back and brushed himself off, glaring at the dark alpha, who was now trying to fight Max instead.
“Both of you, out! Now!” Edward ordered.
Kai turned to stare at Edward. “Wait, what? He wasn’t doing anything!” He said, gesturing towards the knight. “He was only-” Kai was cut off mid sentence by Edward’s angry glare. He suddenly remembered himself and fell silent, seething internally.
“I won’t have fighting in The Horse!” Edward declared. “You want to fight? Take it off my property!”
“Fuck off.” The dark alpha shouted at Edward, and he continued hurling obscenities as Max unflatteringly frogmarched him out of the bar and onto the street.
The knight surveyed the room, pausing quizzically over Kai. “Sorry about that.” He said simply to Edward, before turning to leave. Kai felt a strange concern about him suddenly, he’d been defending him and had probably saved him from a whole lot of trouble. Kai watched as he left quietly, picking up his jacket from a chair on his way out.
The bar quickly returned to how it had been, the chatter resuming as all the patrons turned back to their friends, discussing the whole situation that had just unfolded. Kai shook himself and went to pick up the carrier again, staring glumly at the broken glasses.
A moment later, Edward came over to him. “I want a word.” He said, quietly. “Come round back with me.” Kai followed silently, weighing up his options and resigned to the dressing down he was about to receive. His biggest concern at that moment was his cover, which he had to keep.
“I, um,” he started as Edward shut the office door. “I’m really sorry about that.” He said. “I didn’t realise he was going to do that, I tried to stop him but I couldn’t and-”
“You’re not in trouble.” Edward interrupted, matter-of-factly.
Kai did a double take. “I’m not?” He asked, confused.
“Of course not, Erin told me what happened.” Edward said, warmly. “You alright?” He asked, with an almost fatherly concern.
“Yeah, I’m okay.” Kai replied. “He didn’t manage to hurt me. Just a bit shaken up, I guess.”
“Good, be more careful in the future.” Edward rested his hand gently on Kai’s shoulder. “I know you flirt with them for tips, but-”
“I …” Kai started to protest, but Edward quickly shut him down with a single look.
“Keep your wits about you, more so when you’re dealing with drunk alphas who’ll make stupid decisions.” He advised. “And keep behind the bar for the next couple of nights, I don’t want you causing another brawl. If either of those fuckers come back, you come round back and through the fire escape. Tell Max out front that they’re back and he’ll sort them out. I won’t be having either of those two back any time soon. Clear?”
“Crystal.” Kai confirmed, slightly shocked. “You’re not mad?” He asked, still unable to fathom how he wasn’t being sent packing.
“At them? Definitely.” Edward said, with a scowl. “But at you? No.” He continued, with a warm smile. “I’ve been running this place a long time. It’s not the first time I’ve had two alpha fighting over an omega, and it’s not going to be the last.”
“Oh, ok.” Kai said. “Thanks, Edward.” He added.
“Anyway, back out you go.” Edward said, ushering Kai back towards the bar. “You’re not off the clock yet.”
As Kai was back pulling pints, he quickly noticed that he was beginning to feel tired, and a little sick. He blamed adrenaline for it entirely and poured himself another drink to help calm his nerves, which he took sips from between serving patrons. He was not helped by people’s comments about the fight to him as he got their drinks, nor was Erin’s constant wittering conducive to Kai feeling any better; how she knew something like that was going to happen, and how she was so scared of alphas now, and that she was never going to go out from behind the bar again if there’s any alphas around. He was relieved an hour and a half later, when the bar finally closed.
As Erin took the glassware to the dishwasher around back and kindly sorted out the broken glasses for him, Kai went around the other side of the bar and began cleaning. As he was wiping down a stool, Edward found him.
“You’ve had quite a night.” He said. “Do you want me to call you a cab home?” He asked, kindly.
Kai smiled up at the older man. “I’m fine, thanks. It’s not too far, no need to waste a cab fare.” He said. “I’d like the fresh air too.” He added.
“Alright.” Edward replied. “See yourself home safe then, don’t worry about all of this. I’ll handle it in the morning.” He took Kai’s washcloth from his hand and gently nudged him towards the door.
“Thanks.” Kai said, grateful at being let off early, walking towards the door.
It wasn’t a cold night, but it wasn’t warm either and after several hours in the hot, stuffy bar, Kai winced slightly as he stepped outside. He rubbed his hands together, and scanned the car park instinctively. Out of the corner of his eye, at the entrance, he noticed some movement and a shadow underneath the streetlamp. It was a person, leaning against the pole with their hands in their jacket pockets, but Kai couldn’t make out who it was from the strange shadows that the lamp above was casting.
“Who’s there?” Kai shouted out to them.
The figure started walking forward gradually, pulling their hands out of their pockets and holding them up. “It’s just me.” They said. Kai instantly recognised the voice, it was the knight.
“I thought you got kicked out?” Kai said, suspicious of the alpha. “What are you still doing here?”
“Yep,” the knight replied, seemingly cheerful. “But it turns out that Max and I knew each other in school. We were chatting for a while before he went home.”
Kai looked the other man up and down, still suspicious. “That doesn’t answer my second question.” He said, defensively.
“I wanted to apologise about earlier.” The alpha said. “And I make sure that other guy didn’t hurt you or anything.”
“Okay. Thanks.” Kai replied, flatly. “And I’m fine.”
Α
Jake stood there awkwardly, watching the omega frown at him. He didn’t really know what to say, he was hopelessly out of practise at this sort of thing.
“I’m Jake, by the way.” He said, trying to fill the awkward silence. He took a couple of steps towards the omega, but stopped when he took a step back, regarding Jake with a weary look. “Sorry.” Jake said quickly.
The omega looked him up and down again, this time he seemed more puzzled than he had at first. “It’s … it’s fine.” He said, his gaze flicking to the road.
“Do you have a ride?” Jake asked, noticing that the omega wasn’t making his way to a car. “Or do you walk?”
The omega regarded Jake for a little longer, before sighing, his shoulders dropping and losing some of their tension. “I walk, my place is just down the road.” He said. Jake figured it was a good sign.
“Fancy a friend? For company, on the walk?” He asked, smiling brightly.
The omega narrowed his eyes. “And at the end?" He asked, cautiously.
Jake felt his smile drop from his face immediately. “I’m not that kind of guy.” He said, hurt by the omega’s implication.
“Sorry.” The omega replied immediately, clearly noticing Jake’s offense. “It’s been a long night.” He said, looking over his shoulder to the alcove where Max had been standing earlier. Jake suddenly realised how it would probably seem to him, his hurt fading quickly. “I’d like the company, if you’re still offering?” The omega asked tentatively, with a small, shy smile.
“Sure.” Jake said, his confidence building a little. “Shall we?” He gestured to the entrance and pavement beyond. The omega slipped his hands into his jeans’ pockets and began walking down the road, with Jake falling in pace beside him.
A few moments after they set off, a gentle breeze began to blow. Jake didn’t think anything of it, until he heard the sharp intake of breath beside him. Looking over to the omega, he noticed that he was shivering a little and had his arms tight against his body. Without a second thought, Jake slipped his jacket off and held it out to him. “Here.” He said, as the omega looked at him, slightly confused.
“I couldn’t.” He replied. “What about you?”
Jake smiled. “I don’t mind the cold.” He said, holding the jacket out a little further to try and encourage the omega to take it. “Besides, I’ve been stood out in the cold for a while, I’m used to it by now. And I’m wearing a jumper. You need a jacket more than me.”
The omega looked between Jake and his jacket, clearly trying to decide if he was cold enough to override his reluctance. After a moment, he gingerly took the jacket and slowly slipped it over his shoulders. As he slipped his first arm down the sleeve, he closed his eyes and let out a little hum of comfort, inhaling deeply. Jake couldn’t help but chuckle, which drew a goodnatured scowl from the omega. As he lifted his arms up, Jake went from chuckling to a full laugh. “You damn alphas!” The omega exclaimed, laughing as well. He held up his arm in the jacket, which came down to his fingernails and was about four sizes too big for him. Which made sense, given he was at least a foot shorter than Jake. “Why are you all so huge?” The omega continued. “I could fit both my arms down one of these sleeves.”
“It’s not my fault!” Jake laughed. “You should try finding a good leather jacket that fits when you’re six foot six!”
The omega shrugged happily, slipping his arm into the other sleeve. “I guess I do have an advantage there.” He conceded.
They continued walking as they fell into an amicable silence, both still smiling at the image of the omega in Jake’s huge jacket. After a minute or so, he heard the omega’s stomach rumble. He looked down to see him resting his hand on his stomach.
“Hungry?” Jake asked, curious but also a little concerned that the omega might not have eaten all night. “Fancy something to eat?”
“I’m fine.” The omega replied. “I’ve got some food at home, I’ll eat there.”
“Oh, alright.” Jake said, a little put out, his idea shut down. Although … “You sure?” He asked again. “Just that there’s this really good burger place on the corner after next.”
That had the omega’s attention. He looked up with curious suspicion. “How good is really good?” He asked.
“‘Won county contests’ good.” Jake said, folding his arms. His idea was working, judging by the way the omega was very subtly licking his lips. “Would that be good enough?”
“Hmmm.” The omega pondered. “I guess I could treat myself.” He said, tentatively.
“Perfect!” Jake beamed. “You won’t regret it.”
Jake and the omega walked into the quaint little burger place that he’d been to on occasion. He didn’t visit very often, since they were a little expensive and he used to get his burgers from his uncle, but he knew how much people liked them and he wanted to make a good first impression on the omega. Or at least make up for the first impression he’d already made.
There were three sets of tables and chairs on one side of the shop, with a long bench and intermittent tables that ran the length of the shop on the other. Above the bench were framed pictures of the various contests and good reviews that they’d received over the years, and there were a decent number of them. The sole employee in the shop stood in front of a grill, scrolling through her phone, as they walked in. She looked up when she heard the door open, before putting her phone in her pocket and went to greet them at the till. “Evening,” she said. “How can I help you?” Jake ordered a cheeseburger, feeling a little peckish himself, while the omega ordered a chicken burger.
“I’ll pay.” Jake said casually, as the omega had finished his order.
“Huh?” He looked up at Jake, frowning. “Thanks, but I’ll pay for mine.” He said, hotly.
“It’s my apology.” Jake replied. “For …” he glanced at the cook, “ … for earlier.” He finished.
“It’s fine.” The omega said insistently, before going into his pocket and counting out the right change, holding it out to the cook. She looked hesitantly between Jake and the omega, until Jake just shrugged defeat and let him pay, before handing over the rest of their bill.
“It’ll be about ten minutes.” The cook told them. “I’ll let you know when they’re done.” She said, before walking back into the kitchen and beginning to prep their food. The omega stepped back from the counter and looked around the shop. Jake walked over to one of the tables and took a seat at it, looking over to the omega and waiting for him to join him. The omega hesitated a moment before joining him, sitting down at the table across from him.
They sat for a few moments, the silence feeling more awkward than it had earlier. But Jake was determined. “So.” He said, smiling. “What’s a guy got to do to get a name with you?” He asked, teasing a little.
The omega looked up at him for a moment. “Tightrope walk?” He said, dryly.
Jake chuckled, waiting to see if the omega would be more forthcoming. “I’m not much good at tightropes.” He replied after a few moments. “But I could do circus strong man pretty well?” He smiled.
The omega didn’t respond, he just looked absently down slightly, before sighing and shaking his head a little. His gaze returned to Jake. “Fine,” he said. “I’m Kai.”
“Kai, huh?” Jake said, continuing to gently tease. “What’s so secret about that? Are you on the run or something?”
Kai let out a sudden laugh, before shaking his head. He shrugged casually. “I don’t know, I’ve met some bad alphas, I guess.” He said. “I try to avoid most.”
Jake paused for a moment, a little taken aback. “Makes sense.” He said quietly, mulling over what Kai had said. After a moment, he decided he was reading too much into it, and changed the subject. “So what brought you to town, Kai?” He asked. “I’ve not seen you around before, and I’m pretty sure we’re headed to the motel, aren’t we?”
Kai cocked his eyebrow, regarding Jake for a moment before nodding. “Yeah, I’m just passing through. I’m on a road trip.” He said.
“You got a job on a road trip?” Jake asked, puzzled.
“Hey, fuel isn’t cheap, it doesn’t pay for itself.” Kai smiled. “I’ve stopped off in a couple of places to earn a week or two’s wages to help keep myself afloat.” He explained.
“Great.” Jake said, grinning. “Now I know I should’ve paid then.”
Kai opened his mouth to protest, but Jake just chuckled. Kai rolled his eyes when he realised Jake was teasing. “Yeah yeah.” He said, shaking his head.
“So where are you from then?”
“Up north, it’s pretty rural, several hours away. You won’t know it.”
“Oh really? I’ve been up north once or twice.” Jake said, raising an eyebrow.
Kai narrowed his eyes but remained smiling. “Do you want my postcode?” He said, grinning mischievously. Then his look changed to a more curious one. “What took you north?” He asked.
“My old job.” Jake said, simply. “I had to go between cities every now and again.”
“Cities? So you’re not from here either?”
Jake regarded Kai. “No.” He said, impressed by his deduction. “I used to live in Edenfell, but I moved to live with my uncle a couple of years ago.”
“Edenfell’s nice.” Kai replied, his voice quieting a little.
“Not really.” Jake said, grimacing. “You’ve been?”
“Once or twice.” Kai simply replied, he looked a little sad suddenly. Jake wasn’t sure why, but he had a feeling Kai didn’t want to talk about it.
He looked around the shop, trying to think of something to talk about, thinking about Kai’s road trip. “So, what did you do before your trip?” He asked, brightly.
Kai looked up at him, surprised, like he’d been pulled from his thoughts unexpectedly. “Erm.” He said. “Just odd jobs.”
“What like?” Jake asked, curious.
“What is this? An interrogation?” He replied, teasingly.
Jake held up his hands. “I didn’t mean to pry.” He smiled. “Feel free to ask me anything.”
Kai thought for a moment as Jake watched him, curious what he was about to ask. “Did you know that other alpha?” Kai asked solemnly.
Jake laughed nervously, wishing he didn’t have to talk about that whole debacle. “Woah, that’s a bit deep.” He said, but Kai kept looking at him, waiting for an answer. “Well, I know enough that he’s a nasty piece of work.” Jake explained. “From what I’ve heard, he’s had run-ins with the law before. And I think he was called Mallory.” Jake thought for a moment. “Or was it Mackory? I’m not sure.” He said.
“You don’t like him?”
“I like him as much as I’d like anyone who tried to force himself on an omega.” Jake replied, shrugging.
“But how come you got involved?” Kai asked, his curiosity obvious.
Jake was puzzled. “Because you were in trouble?” He replied, not really understanding Kai’s question. “You clearly didn’t want him, I could see things ending badly and I didn’t want that to happen to you.” Jake said. “Or to anyone.” He added quickly, worrying he might scare Kai off by admitting that he felt a strange care towards the omega. Kai was regarding him curiously, and Jake couldn’t tell if his feelings were reciprocated. “Anyway, an answer for an answer, hmm?” He suggested. “So what sort of work have you done? I’m curious how you would make enough to support yourself.”
Kai looked around for a moment. “Obviously, bar work.” He started. “But I was a cleaner at a large estate in the countryside. I didn’t stay long though, it was so much work and they didn’t pay too well.” He explained. “So many rooms!” Jake chuckled at Kai’s exasperation. “These days,” Kai continued. “I tend to do whatever work I can find. Work means money, money means food.”
Jake smiled. “That’s kind of boring.” He whined. “I was expecting you to be some kind of secret agent, with how secretive you were at first. That would’ve been interesting.” He joked.
Kai shook his head, bemused. “Even if I was a secret agent, wouldn’t telling people about it defeat the secret part.” He teased. “I could be working undercover for the government.” He smiled mischievously again, whilst Jake laughed along.
“Yeah, that would be a little outrageous.” He agreed.
They lapsed into a friendly silence again, both of them smiling. As he sat there, Jake was mulling over what Kai had said earlier, and he didn’t fully believe it. Or at least, he thought there was something different about Kai. As he was regarding him, Kai seemed to notice Jake. “What?” He asked, smiling.
“I …” Jake started. “… Nothing.” Jake stopped. Surely he didn’t want to admit what he was thinking to Kai. “I just thought …” He tried again. “… Nah, it was nothing.” He said, backing down.
“Really?” Kai cocked an eyebrow. “What was it?” He asked.
“It … it was nothing.” Jake lied.
Kai tilted his head slightly, smiling. “Come on, if it was nothing then surely it’s not a problem to share it?” He encouraged, gently insistent.
Jake sighed, and paused for a moment, constructing his thoughts. “I mean ...” He began, feeling a little nervous. “You said that you generally avoid alphas, right?” Kai nodded, looking a little worried. “But you seem fine with me.” Jake continued. “The way you talk, you seem like you never interact with alphas if you can possibly help it, which I suppose makes sense in your situation. But …” He paused. “But here we are, we’re chatting happily about stuff and you don’t seem to be uncomfortable. I might just be reading this wrong, but I guess I feel like you might be interested?”
Kai looked at him, confused. “Jake, what are you saying?” He asked, his voice betraying his worry.
“I’m not really sure.” Jake admitted. “I just know that there’s something about you which is different. Different even to other omegas, let alone other people in general.” He paused, looking over Kai and trying to gauge the other man’s reaction. He couldn’t tell if Kai was being receptive or not, so he decided to take the plunge. “What I’m saying is that I think there’s more between us that’s … something, you know?” Jake looked at Kai hopefully, but Kai just looked down.
“Jake.” He started. “I …” He faltered as he spoke.
“I assume that’s a ‘No’ then?” Jake said flatly, trying to use sarcasm to mask his disappointment, but not really succeeding.
Kai didn’t say anything, just slipped Jake’s jacket off his shoulders and left it on the back of his chair. “Jake, you’re a great guy. Thank you for the company and for helping me earlier. But you deserve more than me.” Kai said simply.
Jake was speechless, he didn’t understand what Kai meant. He had so many questions, but no words to ask them with. He stared at Kai as he stood up and walked over the counter. He quietly asked the cook to put his food in a takeaway container. Jake was still speechless and he watched Kai walk through the shop towards the door. As he reached the door, he paused, looking back over his shoulder. “Goodbye.” The omega said simply, before opening the door and walking away, leaving Jake alone.