Feeling the need to defend Ash, Rose was about to protest when Fred waved his hand dismissively, having gotten rid of the cup of tea already."I don't need the answer"Unsure of what he thought about it all, Rose didn't comment further as she was positive, she already had enough to think about. "You never answered my question" Rose said, thinking back to how the conversation started. "Why me?""Because you are the right age, have the right name and have shown the right qualities to prove me right if you get the chance." Fred said, his expression genuine and soft for a second before he winked, and his entire body language and tone changed."I feel like I've pissed my pants, and I need to go and have a wank, so I'm going to jump in the shower" Fred said and threw the pillow he had been holding back onto the sofa, just missing Kenny who had now curled up into a ball, sleeping soundlessly.Ashleigh looked up from her book and made a face "Dude, too much information".Just flashing Ashleig
Feeling his heart ache in his chest, Sebestian crawled up the bed over Rose, pleased with how Rose without question parted her legs for him while keeping eye contact. Leaning down over her, Sebestian closed his eyes- feeling almost drunk with a desire to not just claim her as his mate but to love and protect her and to be loved and protected by her in return. "I've wanted you from the moment I first saw you" Sebestian confessed as he closed the distance between them, leaving a trail of small kisses along her jawline as the air around him got thicker with Rose's scent, pushing and pulling at Sebestian as it came off Rose in waves.Closing her eyes, Rose willingly tipped her head to the side in submission, letting out a series of small gasps as Sebestian let his lips brush against the sensitive skin, every so often leaving small wet kisses that sent shivers down Rose's spine.Lowering his body down over Rose's, Sebestian rolled his hips and gasped as Rose copied his movement, their bodi
Brushing his fingers through Rose's hair, Sebestian was enjoying the small affectionate cuddles when he heard a soft warm sound. Almost caught a little off guard, Sebestian realized fondly that Rose was softly purring. It wasn't rare for Omegas to purr, but Sebestian for some reason hadn't expected her to and knowing that Rose felt happy, safe and relaxed enough to do so made his heart swell with a sense of pride and happiness. Not wanting to take Rose out of what she was feeling, Sebestian stayed quiet as he closed his eyes and listened to the comforting sound of his Omega's purr, affectionately playing with her messy hair.Some hours later: -Waking up from the sound of her phone going off, Rose blinked her eyes open and let out an almost sad whimper. She didn't want to get up, she couldn't remember falling asleep, but she did know that she was comfortable and lacked any will to leave the bed or her Alpha.Her Alpha.Smiling at the thought, Rose pushed himself up a little and looked
Clenching ger teeth together for a second, Rose fought to keep his expression neutral. "With all due respect, Aldert. I have seen first hand the real effects of a functioning—" Rose started before he once again cut off."Even if there was something to these so-called sub-packs " Aldert said, showing his hostility towards the idea with how he said the last two words. "There simply isn't room for such a thing in our packs, not this one or other pack. Omegas have been allowed to be a part of our operation and field teams, even with your disabilities and the stress you cause your teams with your absence when you go though your heats. What you are proposing we test wouldn't just take out the Omega in question from duty, but several other Omegas as well, which would cause several teams unnecessary stress, it simply isn't fair."Feeling her blood boil in anger, Rose gripped the armrests of the chair she was sitting in tightly. "What isn't fair is that Omegas' absence due to their heat is see
Frowning, Ash shook his head "What? No, that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that it's harder than what I thought, mainly because you've hid it so damn well. I remember Sebestian losing his shit back when he watched over you during your heat. He was talking about how warlock Omegas were cherished or something and how we were treating you like garbage. I was furious, I couldn't see it, I just figured it was your choice""It was my choice" Rose said. She had heard about how Sebestian came to stay with her back then, but she had never heard it from Ash's point of view."Are we going to pretend like people's opinions and behavior towards Omegas didn't play a part?" Ash said with one of his signature smirks on his face, knowing full well that he had stumbled upon an argument that he couldn't lose.Pushing back up, Rose was already feeling a lot better than she had done before. It was strange to talk to Ash about this stuff, but it was actually kind of nice as well. "Let's go work out, I
Looking at the box in front of her, Rose peeked up a little to look it over. It was rather large, so a lot of what she feared it would be was clearly no longer an option. The box was made out of some kind of dark grey, almost black wood and the corners were covered in gold, probably to protect it. It looked old, like years old and the clasps were beautifully crafted in the same golden material. "What is it?" Rose asked as she looked at the box, having put her cutlery down now, actually curious.With his eyes locked on Rose, trying to take in every bit of her reaction, Sebestian just nodded towards the box first. "Open it" he said when Rose didn't move, having forgotten all about the breakfast she hadn't really been all that interested in to start with.Pushing up out of her seat to be able to take a proper look at it, Rose looked down at the top of the box and the gold pentagram, surrounded by golden vines and leaves that curled out towards the corners. It was beautiful, but it looked
Getting back to Sebestian after a full day that had mainly consisted of training and planning out possible future work, Rose hung up his jacket by the door and kicked off her shoes. Stretching a little, Rose walked into the living room and spotted Sebestian sitting on one of the sofas flipping through a book. The loft was warm and dimly lit, it smelled of something sweet and maybe a little unnatural, so Rose guessed that Sebestian had spent the day working."Good day, sweetie?" Sebestian said as he looked up and smiled.Nodding, Rose was about to sit down when she spotted a pillow with a red bow on it lying on the other sofa. "Yes, I could be called back, but I'm here for now" she said, her eyes still resting on the out of place pillow.Looking at Rose, looking at the pillow, Sebestian smiled and closed the book he had been reading, placing it down on the table and instead picking up his martini. He waited until Rose looked back at him, looking a little confused. He rather enjoyed the
Not more than a few minutes passed before Rose came into view from behind the bookshelf. She had only left a small gap between the heavy furniture and the window, just big enough for her to get in and out. It wouldn't be dark, Sebestian noticed that although she had pushed back the bookshelf, the chair and a small coffee table, she had left the two small w climbing lamps as, not to mention that one of the four walls in there would be almost one hundred percent window.Looking at Sebestian at the bed, Rose felt herself blush slightly. Sebestian hadn't watched her, he couldn't with how Rose had decided to re-furnish that bit of the room, but it was still strange or at least different to have him just wait."Want a cuddle?" Sebestian asked and patted the bed next to him.Feeling her cheeks heating slightly more, Rose wondered how he knew, how he knew just like that that she felt like she needed one. Was it a nest thing? Was it common? Nodding, Rose decided she didn't really care what it
Cristina was stunned momentarily. Sebestian therapist before her complained that even after fifteen sessions he didn't manage to get through to the man, didn't make any progress at all. She wasn't arrogant enough to deem herself the right person to help. But perhaps she was lucky enough to stumble into his life at just the right moment. "You know that none of that is true", she was bold enough to proclaim. Sebestian' anger wasn't aimed at Rose. "I only saw you two together for... what, ten seconds before he left the room. And I could already see how much he loves and values you." She saw the fight rising from deep within Sebestian and catalogued that as a good sign. "He almost lost you. A part of him must be scared that she still might." She gave him a moment. "Rose knows how strong you are. Be patient with her while she tries to remember it again."Sebestian smiled wryly. His eyes softened, though. "I'm not a patient man.""What kind of a man are you, then?" Cristina threw back.Sebe
When she pulled her a hug he clung to her tightly. It made her feel a little less like the world was falling apart but she retracted from the comfort quickly. She was still shaken from the mild panic attack he'd have to postpone dealing with until later. Resolute to push through and put one foot in front of the other Rose headed out of the room with her sister following her. She was putting on a coat when something occurred to her. "Thank you, for everything. How did you know that I was having a...?" She didn't want to say it oud loud."You were shouting to your phone." Monika went on before she could panic. "You know the boys; they wouldn't wake up to a bomb going off when they're tired enough. They're fast asleep, I checked." After her reassurance she focused on searching through his coat's pockets, so she didn't see her frown. "What are you doing?"Rose's brows furrowed while she spun around wildly. Her head whirred and her hands were shaking along with her whole body. "My car keys
Rose had no idea what happened next. By some miracle she managed to get the boys to calm down, at least to an extent. Apparently, she also ordered takeaway none of them really wanted because suddenly there were cardboard containers all over the kitchen. She did have a far too vivid memory of the lead heavy silence that lingered as they ate, all of them much too aware of the empty seat at the table.It wasn't until later, as she stared at the kids while they watched cartoons huddled together, the full gravity of the situation fell mercilessly on Rose's shoulders. Everything she'd almost lost and could still lose... It weighed too much.Rose's stomach rolled violently. She dashed as fast as she could to the toilet connected to the bathroom, knowing that the boys wouldn't have to hear whatever noise she made there. As soon as she fell to her knees, she threw up loudly, feeling the world falling apart around her yet again.How was she supposed to keep fighting when every time she thought
Ray continued to avoid mentioning his daddy for a couple of more days. Did his best to not even think about his other parent because it hurt too much. But in the end the whole situation got too much on him.He'd had a lot of nightmares since his daddy's accident. They haunted him almost every night. Something about the one he had one particular dark night made it worse than others.In the horrible dream he and his papa were in a forest, where thick fog began to engulf them. Ray was terrified and did his best to keep up with the man walking in front of him. In the end he found himself standing paralyzed while the fog swallowed his papa."Daddy?" There was no response and fear squeezed his chest mercilessly. Tears filled his eyes. "Daddy? Daddy!" Only silence answered him.Ray woke up crying, with his entire body covered in cold sweat. His heart hammered while his wide eyes darted around, trying to convince his mind that he was safe. That he was home and his daddy was safe, too. He want
Holding Max... It felt so good that had hard time controlling his emotions, especially because the brain injury seemed to enhance all feelings. But listening to his son's excited babbling was also a bit much on his still recovering head."... got a new class hamster. And guess what, papa! He has a missing leg, too. I said that he's just like my papa, and Miss Pen gave me a big hug." Max sounded endearingly proud of him, himself and the little creature the child now had a special connection with.Carefully avoiding Max noticing, Sebestian cast a slightly panicked look at Rose. 'Miss Pen?' How many people were there in his son's life he had no idea of? 'His teacher, Aline', Rose mouthed back.Max went on, completely unaware of the adults' exchange. "... named him Skunk, because he's black and white. He likes cuddles, I can tell. But Miss Pen says that we can't cuddle him too much because he's so small and fragile."Sebestian listened to Max babbling as intently as he could, his new limi
Monika likely noticed what she'd done to her hands but didn't call him out on it at the moment. Instead, she moved to hug her, but he refused her with a shake of head. "I'm... I can't." Her voice was so hoarse that for a second, she wondered if she screamed out loud, after all. "If you touch me, I'll lose control and..." She trailed off. She couldn't lose control; too many people she loved needed her to stay strong right now.Monika nodded. Not necessarily happy but understanding. "As long as you know that you're not alone in this. We're all here for you, all of you. Got that?"Rose nodded, dangerously close to losing control over herself. After that... she didn't have very clear memories. She took a cab to the hospital, even on such a day sensible enough to know that she shouldn't drive. Her feet led him to the ICU. The sterile reek and suffocating silence that smacked her across the face at that ward just about tore her new numb bubble to shreds.There was no one around to update he
That night Ray woke up needing to use the bathroom. He yawned and left the comfort of his bed reluctantly, then began to tiptoe towards the toilet. Halfway there he froze at what he saw on the balcony.His mommy stood there with his grandma. Crying while she hugged her and whispered comforting words, appearing distraught herself. Even a child could see how heartbroken his mommy was.It terrified Ray more than he would've cared to admit. Things were supposed to be improving. His daddy was awake. There was supposed to be no need to be sad anymore. Did something go wrong again?Ray managed to retreat to his room unseen. He hid himself under a blanket entirely, trembling miserably. He couldn't sleep while his thoughts whirred.His therapist had helped convince Ray that he wouldn't be sent away, that he wouldn't lose his family. But the insecurities and fears lingered, ready to resurface at any given moment. He hadn't seen his papa in what, to a child, felt like a lifetime. He missed his p
Sebestian felt like he was held under water while he listened to Rose, eyes fixed on the opposite wall. "Ray is another child." It was all told with the kind of paternal love that'd already showed itself once.Rose tried to show a picture from her phone, but Sebestian was too ashamed and overwhelmed to look at it. The Alpha closed his eyes and tried very hard to breathe properly. "How long?" How much time had he lost? How many precious memories? What kind of a parent was he, to forget his own son? He wanted to scream from frustration when the words got tangled together and were nearly impossible to spew out coherently. "... long?"Rose frowned before finally figuring out what he meant and answering tentatively. "He's been our son always." The full weight of those words crashed down on them both simultaneously.Sebestian struggled to make sense of everything. It was like getting sucked into an alternative reality. Like waking up from long sleep, to find that someone else had been livin
The whole family was in an agreement that Rose shouldn't be left alone at the hospital for long. They knew how bad off she was, while trying anxiously to support others. And Sebestian... They didn't want to imagine Samantha without him, for even a second. Because it'd be a loss she wouldn't survive, at least as herself.Monika braced herself for great many things on her way from her workplace at the morgue to the ICU. Her chest clenched and she almost dropped the takeaway coffees she carried when she saw her sister sitting on a bench, wiping his eyes. Then she realized that the tears she fought back were those of joy.Rose's eyes shone from tears and happiness when they met hers. "He... He woke up, Monika. Sebestian woke up and talked to me."Monika decided that it was time to ditch the coffee. She tossed the mugs aside, not really caring where they ended up. Then she pulled her sister to a tight embrace. Which she returned with equal vigor. She could practically feel the relief radia