Chapter Text
“Check it out!” Bobby smirked as two attractive joggers ran by the front of their stopped van. The three boys couldn’t help but stare, not just at the bodacious beta babes crossing the street, but at all the sights and sounds. There were so many students, all varied in style, size and age, each one of them wearing optimistic smiles like it was the start of something big. A sentiment Max and his friends shared.
Max was ecstatic with his first taste of true freedom, he tried to keep a collected and cool demeanor, but the thrill of what lay ahead was threatening that composure. The campus was sprawling with buildings behind buildings, wide open greenery spaces, filled with little stands and stalls for freshman orientation, promoting all the clubs, groups and extracurriculars the campus had to offer. There was a thrilling feeling of something new being around every corner, every path leading to a fantastic destination he had yet to discover. But most thrilling was the state of the art athletic recreation facilities. Say goodbye to the dinky homemade plywood ramp in his backyard, he was moving up to bigger and better! Even the public skatepark in Spoonerville did not hold a candle to this.
“Gentlemen, I welcome you to the first day of the rest of our lives” Max announces as he sees all the future potential in front of him. He would finally feel a taste of what it was like to be a true alpha, the independence, a chance to make his own way and make a name for himself. To be the person he knew he could be, and more!
“Wow. That's pretty deep. Did you get that off a bumper sticker?” Bobby asks, wanting it for his junker
The boys looked upon the archway leading into fraternity row, excitement peaking as he noticed the fraternity insignias along the tops of the houses. All of the homes were unique in colour, size, style and craftsmanship, giving little character details about the values of the members themselves and what each fraternity stands for.
“Yo, I spy the Gamma house” Bobby announced, not that it was hard to spot. After all it's the biggest, oldest and most intricate house on the block. It was the first fraternity to be founded here, and you could tell by its old architecture and slightly worn feel, not that it looked dingy or old, just lived in and historic, like a heritage building. It had an impressive legacy with some of the world's most successful Alphas being a part of the brotherhood. Being a part of the fraternity guaranteed success outside of school, nepotism at work.
“Which means that dude right there must be..” All of their eyes led to the same place, standing on the Gamma porch was a man who stood so confidently he looked like the centerpiece of the whole building.
“The one the only Bradley Uppercrust the third” P.J and Bobby spoke in unison, jaws gapped at his very sight. The man had silky brown hair and striking blue eyes, he was basking in the praise of the other students surrounding him. Nothing about him was particularly flashy, he didn't wear bright colours or a formal suit to call attention to himself, just khaki pants, a crimson sweater and collared undershirt, odd for a summer's day but not loud or gaudy. He didn't have to call attention to himself with anything flashy, he was already the center of attention and seemed very aware of this fact.
“The college X-games king” P.J added enthusiastically.
Max didn't know why he felt something intense burning in his gut at the sight of the so-called King. It was a feeling he hadn't felt before, so alarming he looked away in a hurry hoping it would pass. He pressed his lips in annoyance noticing his friends continue to stare at Bradley like he was Powerline or something.
Was he jealous?
Max didn't consider himself the jealous type, despite being an alpha he was generally calm and relaxed, but he had grown up around betas, only running into the odd alpha on occasion; like Roxanne's dad, and he was much too young to challenge his authority at the time.
It occurred to him that while this would be his first taste of freedom, it would also be his first taste of the real world's hierarchy. His father was a beta, and raised him the way any beta would be raised, but Max knew from a young age he was different, his teachers and his peers always had great expectations of him and in return always wanted to stand out.
“Yeah, until we take the crown” Max smoothly said, unsure what prompted his aggressive statement, of course they wanted to win, to get noticed and make a statement as Freshman, but this desire to win never came at the expense of another, that was just the cause and effect of the games.
Now suddenly, he did relish the idea of even Bradley, King of campus recognizing his greatness.
They pull away from the Gamma house and head off to find their dorms, leaving a cloud of smoke exhaust behind them.
-
Freshman orientation weekend had to be the highlight of Max's life.
Okay he was exaggerating at the moment, but it felt really good. He had spent the last 48 hours skateboarding around campus, eating pizza, drinking, skating around campus drunk, crashing sorority parties, hitting on chicks and of course eating more pizza.
And now he could add sleeping in to that list, he didn't mind since he had no obligations today anyway so 2pm was as good a time to wake up as any. He yawned as he stretched his arm around one of the Theta sisters he’d brought home last night. She was a gorgeous beta and a freshman as well, with long platinum blond hair, and dark green eyes. She smelled like vanilla and blueberries, sweet and fresh. Truthfully, He didn't know much else about her, but that was mutual, it was a pretty crazy party after all.
He smiled at her and she smiled right back, eyes half lidded and suggestive, he nearly thought they'd be going for round two before she teased “Your roommates are pretty patient..” reminding him that this room was supposed to be shared..
“OH SHIT” Maybe he had some obligations after all. He shot up and she chuckled, also getting out of his bed and putting on the clothing Max had removed the night before. “Uh, sorry..um?” he pressed his lips realizing he didn't know her name, had they even exchanged names? It was all a blur.
“Tiffany” She answers “you can call me Tiff though”
“Tiff” he said bashfully “Uh, sorry for the mess..” he did not feel very gentlemanly as the room was a hurricane of clothing, dirty dishes and pizza boxes.
He did manage to find a slice of old pizza left over in one of the boxes, offering it to her as breakfast to go. She looked a little grossed out but took it anyway.
“Thanks Max, give me a call sometime” she says as she opens the door to Max’s dorm, waking up the two freshmen that had passed out in the hallway on the other side. It wasn’t a unique site, it was Freshman orientation weekend after all, so there were many freshmen sleeping in the halls, respecting the sanctity of the sock on the doorknob law.
PJ and Bobby shake their heads as they wake up, unable to stop their staring. Tiffany smirked at the crude drawings all over their faces, clearly the sophomores and seniors had been through here and left no face untouched by their ink. She winked before walking down the hallway out of sight.
“Dude…” PJ says while aw struck
“Nice” Bobby gave his friend props.
Max grinned pompously “Oh yeah, first official college fling!”
“First girl after Roxxy..” PJ says
“I am proud of you man,Just don't go all love struck and coo-coo over her like you did-” Pj nudged Bobby, taking him out of his insensitive rambling
Max rolled his eyes “Pfft, no way not this time! I’m playing the field! Just going to have fun! Meet lots of girls, not get tied down again! I’m free, I'm gonna live it up!”
“Ay Ay! As the master of the field stick with me, we’ll have a new girl in our beds every night” Bobby wiggled his eyebrows
“Man, I don't want to be on the hallway floor again” Pj complained as he inspected the crudely drawn dicks on his face.
“The three of us, we can be the three musketeers of getting babes!” Bobby pulled the two of them in with his arms
“I dont want babes!”
“Ohh la la laaameo” Bobby howled “We need to get you some tail too”
“I’m looking for something deeper than that!” Pj argued
“Deeper than tail?” Bobby asked bluntly, seeingly genuinely confused by PJ’s request.
“I want someone who understands me, real companionship, meaningful conversations, just joy in another's company” PJ grasped his hands to his chest in a dramatic love struck fashion.
“You should keep your standards PJ” Max patted his shoulder “Don't go around being a hound dog like Bobby”
“Don't hate me cause you ain’t me” Bobby waved his hand at them dismissively
“After today we won't have much time for fooling around anyway” Max states
“Whaaat do you mean by that?” Bobby clearly had objections to this news
“Don't forget our main goal boys” Max put his arms around their shoulders
“Ugh, graduating. Don't remind me” PJ looked bored just thinking about the hard work aspect of college life.
“My main goal is the ladies” Bobby retorted
“No, come on guys, remember! Goal number one is winning the X-games!” Max said in surprise, he thought they were all on the same page. “Then we can worry about graduating! And winners get babes by default!”
“Yes!” PJ and Bobby cheered at the very convincing speech. They raised their hands up high and Max hit them with a firm high five “Let's show them all what real skill looks like!”
—
Max had one more goal for the last day of orientation, he dug through his luggage, which had yet to be properly unpacked, pulled on a clean pair of jeans and a red baggy shirt. Their messy room would have to wait another day, or two, or more..honestly it was low on his priorities.
Bobby and PJ washed the ink off their faces, complaining about how they'd need to get back at the bozos that marked them up. The damn sophomores were taking out last year's humiliation on the next round of newcomers, it was a vicious cycle, a lesson on the consequences of falling asleep in a public place.
Once they were freshened up to their standards, Max grabbed his wheels and led his pack as he typically did, skating out of the dormitory with excitable cheers that garnered attention from students that turned to check out the noise. A positive thing about being the de facto leader was that Bobby and PJ didn't ask questions about where they were skating to, they trusted Maxs judgement and went along for the fun. Lucky for Max because he knew exactly where he wanted to go but couldn't put into words why. Of all the sights they saw on their way to the campus, the most thrilling for him had been the Gamma house. Something about it nagged at Max to revisit, his business felt unfinished there.
He had seen Uppercrust the third, now it was time for Uppercrust the third to see him!
Max did not avoid any obstacles, He saw them as opportunities to show off his skills and amass a little attention for himself. He knew he needed to make a big first Impression. He was a freshman alpha at the bottom of the heap, his name would soon be known even to top dogs like Bradley.
“Look at that guy go” a student praises to her friend
“I can’t look at anything else” the girls giggle to one another, smitten by Max’s moves.
As he approached the Gamma house it felt as if it took herculean strength to skate by without turning his head to stare at the house and its patrons. He noticed through his blurred vision that Bradley was out hitting around a volleyball with some others.
Max swallowed hard, not daring to turn his head and look, Bradley probably fed off that sort of engagement, no doubt it gave him an ego to be gawked at all the time.
Max rode on, playing cool as he let the building momentum and excitement of those around him do the talking.. he had to trust that if Bradley was as keen eyed as they say he would look his way.
—
A ball bounced off the head of the biggest Gamma alpha, he had been too distracted to block Bradley's spike. Instead he watched as a new face rode by their house on a skateboard, jumping a mailbox while spinning a frisbee on his finger. “Woah did you see that?”
Bradley felt a tinge of disappointment that the ladies around him had missed the sweet spike into Tank's forehead. Bradley looked over his shoulder, slight curiosity getting the better of him, wanting to see who or what exactly could take attention away from himself. He saw an unknown alpha skating away, skillfully spinning a frisbee on his finger. While that particular move wasn't mind blowing, the attention the Freshman had garnered in such a small time frame was. He could hear the murmuring and excited chatting, like the Freshman was a show on the road.
Anyone who can attract this many eyes definitely has the making of becoming a great Gamma brother and an asset to Bradleys team.
“Well well well look what the freshman cat dragged in baby, some new meat” Tank said excitedly with devious intent.
Bradley appreciated Tank's go get em attitude. However he didn't have an eye for potential.. or exploitation.
“Hey hey easy big fella that new meat looks like Gamma material” a high compliment coming from the king of campus himself “let's check him out” his charming smile turned into a stern look of authority as he pointed with his thumb and barked out an order.
“Gammas roll!”
–
Max slowed his wheels to let the boys catch up, he tossed the frisbee to another student standing on the walkway. He was well past the Gamma house and Bradley by now.
PJ and Bobby rode up behind Max “Check it out, look who's following us” PJ announced giddily, like an excitable school girl.
Max couldn't suppress his smile, though he tried to look coy and unbothered he was happy his plan had worked better than he ever expected.
He wanted to be noticed, to make an impression, get his name in Bradleys brain like a pest he'd struggle to shake out. But even better, he was pursued, it seemed their meeting would come sooner than expected.
“Let's just make sure we keep it that way” Max felt his confidence surge as he pushed forward on his wheels, making sure to keep his speed above the Gammas, not wanting to be caught up too so quickly.
They left the frat row with their pursuers still giving chase and came out to a nice little shopping district off of campus that catered to the college scene, the road was lined with stores, arcades and food stalls for the college demographic.
One particular joint caught Maxs eye, The Bean scene. It offered what every college student would need to get through a semester, Java.
Max silently got off his board and wandered curiously inside with his pack in tow. The atmosphere was relaxed and hip, the lighting dark with low mood music. He could smell the freshly ground java beans and hear the baristas shouting out the complicated coffee orders.
“Hey you guys grab a table I'll grab the java” Max said as they spit up.
Max got to the coffee bar and heard the pleasant sound of a hand dum being tapped, it echoed just as the lights went out, the curtains opened upon the small stage and a spotlight highlighted the performer. Max was impressed, coffee and entertainment!
The curtains revealed an alpha woman dressed in all black, with striking red lips and hair to match. She was reciting poetry about life and certainly had a flair for the dramatics as she spoke with a new range of energy and emotion in every sentence.
He was thankful for the live show as he waited for his order to brew. The room erupted in clicks and clacks as everyone snapped their fingers in applause. He took the tray of coffees offered to him, still thinking about the performance he turned around quickly, too quickly. He heard a gasp followed by a small hiss of pain. It was Bradley, standing there with boiling hot coffee spilt on his stomach, an ugly dark wet spot staining the freshly ironed burgundy sweater he was wearing.
Max felt a jolt of shame at his faulty first impression “Oh oh! I'm sorry I-I” he had such a solid plan in his head about how this meet would go, he didn't expect to fumble it this quickly. He put the tray of coffee on the counter behind him, freeing his hands to assist with cleaning up.
He noticed Bradleys expression was contorted into pure rage, fingers clenching, as if he intended to strangle someone over some soiled clothing, but luckily for Max his words were more understanding than his body language portrayed.
“No no no, NO” Bradley was so animated as he spoke with dramatics, Max wondered if he was reciting his own slam poetry routine “Its uh, it's alright. Really” though he said it, Max got the distinct impression that it was not alright, something in Bradleys eyes looked completely irate, combined with his toothy smile it was unnerving.
But Bradley seemed to put his mask back on quick enough, he took a deep breath in and the wrathful spark seemed buried enough for Max to notice things other than his anger, like the light blue colour of his eyes.
“You know I'd wager that if you were on a skateboard you wouldn't have spilled a drop” Bradley’s charisma worked to put Max back at ease.
“Heh, You'd win that bet. It's my best event” he happily elated. Bradley smiled at how easy it was to butter up a young freshman alpha and get on their good side.
“Hi, I'm Max” his eyes half lidded as he put out his hand, going back to a more carefree posture, unlike Bobby and PJ who would likely be fawning over the XGames King Max wanted to be as nonchalant as possible. He wasn't in the mindset to stroke the king's ego, he was just another alpha and wanted to be recognized as an equal, not a fan boy.
Bradleys hands were firmly behind his back, not budging to take the offered gesture of politeness. Max looked at his rejected palm, feeling slightly scorned by the refusal though he tried not to let it sour their interaction.
“Bradley. Bradley Uppercrust the third” he paused as if expecting some praise from name alone.
Luckily his goon cleared his throat so Max wouldn't have to acknowledge this fish for recognition and praise.
“Oh yes my right hand man, Gamma brother, Tank” Bradley gestured towards the hulking Alpha
Max couldn't act aloof this time, his mouth was slightly agape and eyes wide, no longer sultry as they had been with Bradley. Tank was the picture perfect definition of an ideal alpha, He was built like a brick shithouse. It really made Max question why exactly this hulking man would capitulate to Bradley, an alpha much smaller and scrawnier.
“Haha the pleasure is all mine baby” the alphas voice was loud, much too loud for the quiet coffee shop atmosphere, but Max didn't get the impression it was intentional, Tank actually sounded friendly despite the initial intimidation from his build alone.
“Welcome aboard little tyke, You're class, the high kind’ His Alpha scent was so powerful it was suffocating, obviously he'd been sweating from the skate over here.
The thought made Max realize that he hadn't noticed a strong scent off Bradley, despite being similarly as active as Tank had been, and in a sweater no less.
Maybe his nose was getting confused with all the new smells and surrounding Alphas, the other Gamma brothers had scents so strong that Bradleys lack of one made him an outlier.
Max was almost tempted to lean in closer to investigate but knew that would definitely get him labeled as a weirdo, some alpha that liked to smell other alphas would be completely ridiculed, he wasn't willing to risk it.
“Max, we have won every collage X Games competition since the beginning” Bradley spoke with pride. As he should. Even Max was impressed, truly it took great skill and bravery to do what any of the teams that participated in the Xgames did, let alone win year after year. Max would have vocalized these feelings if there wasn't some pesky social element that dubbed unbridled excitement uncool.
Still he wished he could ask Bradley about some of his moves and techniques, he felt they could learn a lot from one another.
“And we have decided to make you our first draft pick” Bradley shot finger guns at Max “Lucky you huh, what do you think of that!” The king of campus seemed very excited as he hyped up the opportunity. Max would never accuse an Alpha of begging, but Bradley was close to the line and Max didn't mind it, it felt good to be recognized.
A smile pulled on Maxs lips, feeling a stirring of pride and joy “No way” he chuckled in disbelief “you want us to be Gammas?” He couldn't imagine a better start to the year, he wanted to make an impression but this was completely outside of his expectations, it never crossed his mind that he could JOIN Bradley rather than dethrone him.
Max turned his head to P.J and Bobby who had found a seat close by “Ha! you guys you hear that? We're gonna be part of t–”
“Uh hold on pal” Bradley stopped Max in his tacks “This reservation is only for one” he pointed to Max, making it clear who the Gammas were after.
“Oh” Maxs face fell, deciding to play hard ball “I'm sorry but PJ, Bobby and I are in this together, It's all of us or none of me” Max said with a slightly inflated ego, pushing to see how much Bradley really wanted him.
Bradley wore a smug smile, full of so much amusement and confidence that it sucked all the ego right back out of Max and made him feel insignificant in Bradleys presence.
“Max Max Max, you don't want to be weighed down by those clowns do you? I thought you wanted to win” it was clear that Bradley wouldn't compromise his terms, but he still pressed Max, looking like he didn't get told no often.
“That's just what we're going to do” Max insisted, his tone was a bit shaken, so he straightened up and put more anger into his voice and stance. “like you'll find any better competitors than my teammates, they're the real deal, serious athletes”
Bradley looked towards them, his expression deadpan, unamused and unconvinced.
“Check it uh huuuh” Bobby turned to show he had somehow gotten his hands on a fist full of spoons and straws and shoved them into every orphus he had, at least every hole that didn't involve pants removal.. Max hopped.
PJ waved bashfully with his fingers. He displayed such a lack of confidence that he would get eaten apart by Alphas like the Gammas.
The whole Gamma crew began to laugh and howl hysterically, sucking out the proud and happy energy from Bobby and causing P.J to further sink into himself.
“The only thing yous three could win is the losers' contest” They all began to laugh loudly at the betas expense, their amusement reinvigorated by Tank's insult.
Bradley did not laugh or even crack a smirk as Max's friends were teased, he wore a scowl on his face the same as Max, then snapping his fingers to bring the other alphas in line.
Max was impressed by Bradleys control on the other men; he'd never seen such obedience before. Alphas didn't tend to pack together, as their dominant nature caused a lot of in fighting. Max wondered what Bradley had done to earn so much respect and his spot as their leader.
The actions of halting the ridicule was a kind gesture from Bradley and based on his body language he didn't get the same pleasure out of the taunts that his brothers did, he seemed put off by the behavior.
Bradley seemed more interested in convincing Max with smooth talk and charm. Maybe if it was just the two of them Bradley would have succeeded today, he seemed confident enough in his ability to get what he wanted from others, but ironically it was his pack of clowns getting in his way.
“Wow nice trick, do they go fetch and play dead too” Bobby just couldn't let sleeping dogs lie. Max felt a pang of disappointment, Bradley had offered them an olive branch, a bit of mercy by putting his pack in line, but the betas didn't realize the significance in that act.
Max looked at Bradley curiously as the Gamma leader spoke “Why yes, as a matter of fact they do” Bradley got that crazy look in his eyes again “Gammas, FETCH” he enthusiastically gave them permission to continue and escalate the earlier aggression.
“Uh oh, this can't be good” Bobby put his hands up in defense as he was approached by Tank, all the Gammas had been released from Brad's spell and pursued their targets.
Tank lunges forward and snaps his teeth by Bobby's face, missing biting off his nose by just a hair. The other two Gamma alphas simply followed his lead, looking up at Tank when Maxs other friend came out swinging.. a biscuit around.
“Back off!” PJ warned “I got a biscotti I'm not afraid to use it”
Within the blink of an eye Tank had bitten off the top of the cookie that PJ was waving around his muzzle. PJ laughed nervously at the display and withdrew his hands, probably believing that a dog like Tank could and very much would bite his fingers off if taunted.
Max didn't know when exactly Bradley had gotten so close to him but he noticed the other alpha had made himself comfortable by leaning his elbow on Maxs shoulder as they both watched their packs fighting.
Maybe they would have ended things more civilly today if they were alone Max thought, there was an unmistakable chemistry, Max didn't shove the stranger away, and Bradley was comfortable enough to learn against him so quickly, But it wasn't worth pondering what could have been.
“Alright quit toying with my emotions, I thought we were friends” Bradley spoke like he believed that was the truth, his manipulation was so convincing maybe he did believe it.
Max just rolled his eyes, as much as being in a pack of alphas must have netted them a lot of power and influence, Max would never abandon his pack, let alone his real friends.
Bradleys smile began getting a little too big, and too toothy, bringing back that crazy look where his eyes conveyed opposite emotions the rest of him was giving off. “See I'm giving you the opportunity to join the Gamma Mu Mu fraternity”
Max rolled his eyes at the offer and how Bradley pushed it. They both set their terms, but Bradley wasn't having it.
“Moo Moo, who wants to join a herd of cows” P.J mocked and even Bobby grimaced as they were still surrounded by the other Gamma Brothers.
Bradley pushed off Max's shoulder, standing up straight as he crossed his arms, a cocky smile on his lips. “Tannk” Bradleys voice sounded so soft as he practically sang the other's name and it worked like a siren song, gaining Bradley whatever he wanted.
Tank grabbed PJ with ease, lifting the heavy man right off the floor by the seams of his tighty-whities without breaking a sweat “Now pray tell Sweetheart, would Mr. Uppercrust like a little power wedgie for your viewing pleasure?" Tank held PJ up by his briefs, displaying the humiliation ritual to Bradley.
Max had seen enough, he could smell the fear and embarrassment coming off PJ, he knew he needed to put an end to this “Hey leave him alone” Max walked by Bradley towards Tank, ready for a fight but the numbers weren't in his favor, two of the other Mu Mus pressed their shoulders together, making a blockade that Max couldn't break through.
“Bobby!” Max called out, hoping for some assistance, however, his usually loopy friend was in a predicament of his own, being held upside down by another Gamma goon. Man they were strong.
“Ay don't worry bro! I'm a yellow belt!” Bobby began waving his arms around as if cutting the air “Heyyaw!! Heyyaw”
The Gammas looked confused and unthreatened by this behavior.
“HEY” a stage light shone directly at them, blinding everyone for a moment as their eyes became accustomed to the dark underground interior and were suddenly subjected to the near equivalent of the sun's rays “Daddy-os”
“This is a real L seven scene” the alpha poet from earlier approaches Bradley, recognizing his authority as the pack leader in this particular situation. Bradley still smiled, a brow raised as he heard her out curiously. “Let's all just take a trip down the road of forgiveness and compassion”
“Ooh, passion” Bradley mockingly laughed “I like your style little miss mocha chino, but i'm busy right now” it was impressive how his demeanor could snap so quickly from charming to dangerously annoyed. Despite being An alpha herself, he didn't seem keen on respecting a word she said, most likely because she spoke in an artistic poetry that Bradley wasn't fluent in. He couldn't manipulate someone who's language he couldn't speak.
“Well I'm dizzy right now from watching your downward spiral” she spun her hands around in a downward gesture to match her words.
Bradley crossed his arms, looking bored and above these nonsensical theatrics “Uh why don't you go off and save some whales or something” he mocked dismissively.
“Ha!” She Snapped her finger at him aggressively.
“Oh you slay me tiger” She spoke the way she performed, controlled but with a zest for theatrics. “You are the fly in my soup” She closed the distance between them, asserting herself in his space. For the first time that night he capitulated to someone else's dominance and leaned back, even if only very slightly.
“You are the eyelash in my eye” she didn't give Bradley a chance to find his footing and insult back, she pushed while he struggled to find an opening for his own zinger. “You are so busy blowing out bad vibes in every direction that we are all choking on your second hand smoke” her words built up in range until ending it was a snap of her fingers that carries the weight of a punch.
The drums played like they were her personal theme song.
Snap, Snap, Snap
The noise was persistent, becoming louder as Bradley was suddenly very aware of the attention they'd gathered and it wasn't the good kind he was accustomed to. As much power Bradley had on campus and in the general public, this coffee house was clearly little miss Mocha's domain and Bradley had made the mistake of underestimating her authority here. He never should have been posturing around another alpha's terf.
Now the patrons had gotten involved and they were making their stances very clear. Bradley had a big and powerful pack, but in the coffee shop Mocha had more numbers even if they were betas.
Snap, Snap, Snap
His ego felt a little bruised with every snap, He'd been told off by some poetry slinging hippy, a hopeful new recruit, and tree hugging betas. The snapping kept his mind too crowded to save the situation with a clever come back or equally as scaving jab.
Snap, Snap, Snap
He heard the echoing and felt the eyes on him, even his brothers looked at him for a solution. It was maddening how helpless they were without his leadership. He finally snapped at the continuous, childish taunting.
“Knock it off!” he yelled, Revealing that very small fuse of his. His eyes looked crazy again, but at least his teeth gritting scowl matched his mood.
“What's wrong Brad?” Max mocked
“Don't you dare call me that!” Bradley warned, even Max didn't expect such an impassioned reaction to the short form of his name. It must have been a sensitive spot, Bradley clearly had a lot of those.
“Yeah, don't forget he's the king buster!” Tank must have sensed Bradleys unwinding, as he took a step forward protectively and spoke up in Bradley's defense. Clearly as a means to ground the other man who was practically shaking with anger. It was just enough time for Bradley to come down from his rage high, being reminded of his pack and his standing as their boss seemed to quell whatever insecurities were poking out from his surface.
“Yeah well, we'll dethrone you and the Gammas” Max bit back “your royal lowness!” Max tapped Bradleys chest with the back of his hand, noticing the displeased expression on the others face, clearly put off by physical contact.
“You'll be lucky to be my towel boy” Max continued his mockery, giving Bradley a fun visual for just how far he would sink after that big day. Max turned on his heel, feeling satisfied about his victory in this interaction.
“Why don't we just make a little wager on that” Bradley suggested, not wanting to leave in total defeat. This wager gave him a chance to postpone the conclusion of this argument, so Bradley could leave with his pride intact and plan his winning strategy for later.
“Loser of the finals, will be towel boy to the other” Bradley proposed
Feeling the adrenaline and confidence, Max quickly agreed without hesitation “You've got a deal” they shook on it, looking very intensely into the others eyes.
“Be ready to wipe the dirt off my shoes” Bradley pulled his hand closer “Freshman” he jeered angerly.
Max had gotten close enough to Bradley to notice a faint scent, it was an alpha scent alright but it was diluted with something else, he couldn't tell what it was. Before he could investigate more Bradley pulled away.
“Gammas out!” Bradley ordered, not taking his eyes off Max until he turned, leading his pack towards the cafés exit. Like army men, the Gammas spun and followed in near synchronized lockstep.
“Now that's the first time I ever saw the trash take itself out” Max heard the poet from before say “You got the beat, Boys” she looked impressed.
“You invented it, girl” Max responded a little nervously, happy that this alpha was a lot less weird than Bradley had been. Max didn't have much experience with other alphas, it was nice knowing some were more secure and less crazy than Bradley.
“You let your fingers do the talking Riiiight” Bobby added as they walked towards a table together.
Max grinned, feeling confident about how the day went. While he'd made an enemy out of Bradley and put a big target on his back, the acknowledgement from the king alpha was enough to know he'd achieved his goal of being noticed and made a great first impression. Everyone would see him as a threat to Brad's reign. He just needed to keep the winning streak up, after all he had won the battle but the war was far from over.
—-
After leaving the bean scene Bradley hurried to his board, not only was that whole thing an utter waste of time, he would consider it embarrassing if he cared at all what a bunch of pretentious free-spirited flower people thought of him.
He sped home as quickly as he could, leaving his pack behind to play catchup. The only one who could almost keep up was Tank, who made it home in time to see Bradley retreating up the stairs towards his bedroom.
“Bradley baby, come down here. Let's talk about it” Tank proposed gently. He could see Bradleys cracks better than anyone.
“What's there to talk about?” Bradley asked point blank as he stopped in the middle of the staircase. “Everyone better be on their A-Game this year, regular workout routines, no skipping practices, I won't hear any excuses. We are going to crush those freshman LOSERS” he says with intense hatred before he continues up the steps.
Bradley shut his bedroom door and locked it. Now in solitude he took a deep breath in, trying to calm his nerves, he ran a hand through his hair, pushing his bangs back and entwining his fingers in his locks then pulled at it in frustration as he shouted to himself “Idiot!”
Chasing after Max today was reckless. The new semester hadn’t even begun and already he came so close imploding everything he'd worked for. He had gotten too comfortable in his role, too sloppy after feeling invincible for so long. It was completely unacceptable. He needed to stop fucking around and focus on the goal.
Bradley walks into his in-suit bathroom, a perk he got for being the president of Gamma Mu Mu, luckily for his brothers as Bradley showered three, sometimes four times a day. A habit that bewildered the other Gammas but they did not question him out of respect.
Bradley slammed his hands down onto the vanity as he stared into the mirror. He wore the look of betrayal as he glared intensely at his reflection.
“Impressed by him huh? First New Alpha you see and you’re ready to just give it all up!” He throws his hands up incredulously. He pauses as if expecting a response from the mirror. Noticing the blush blossoming on his cheeks and ears, his body temperature still rising despite the air conditioning working at full power.
He bears his teeth, clenching his fist and slams it into the mirror, shattering the reflection of himself.
Blood oozed from his knuckles and down the shattered glass.
“I’ll show you he's not worth it” he grit his teeth “I’m going to beat him at those games and prove he's below you. You don't need him or any other slack-jawed alpha out there!”
Bradley opened the mirror cabinet and took out an unmarked medicine bottle that had its label peeled off. He fished one pill out from the full bottle, throwing it into the back of his throat before washing it down with sink water.
He pushed off the counter, removing his coffee saturated sweater. He noticed the spill had seeped down into his powder blue collared shirt, leaving an ugly brown stain that he wouldn’t be bothered trying to clean out of it. He reached into his pen pocket and took a slim plastic pouch from it. It was nearly dried of its contents, releasing very little of the alpha pheromone scent it contained. He left it on the sink to be refilled before undressing completely, tossing his shirt in the trash and the rest of his clothing into the laundry hamper.
He turns the shower onto the coldest setting before stepping inside. His breathing got heavier from the cold, but he didn't move from under the water's freezing flow. He could still feel his skin burning up despite the icy temperature around him. He'd wait there for 45 minutes until the heat suppressant pill would kick in and his body heat would stabilize.
He scrubbed every inch of himself, using large handfuls of soaps, shampoos, conditioners, anything even vaguely scented that would wash away or mask his natural pheromones. After his hands had gotten pruney from the water Bradley shut off the tap and stepped out of the shower, wrapping himself in a towel around his waist.
He wanted nothing more than to just lay in bed for the rest of the afternoon, but he had a fraternity to run, his brothers would be lost if he didn't tell them what to do. It was likely they'd been discussing today's incident, so he needed to spin this into a win for himself and the gammas, to save face with his brothers and quell any questions they'd had for his leadership.
Bradley held his breath as he spritzed himself with a bottle of his one of a kind pheromone cologne, gathered at great monetary expense from some Alpha overseas he’d never met before and never wanted to. He had grown to despise the smell after so many years practically bathing himself in it, but it was something he just needed to live with. Bradley quickly changed into a similar business casual outfit like his last, putting a full scent pouch into his breast pocket, then covering it with a sweater.
He took one last shaky breath before standing upright and forcing a big smile across his face. He left his bedroom to find his brothers and keep this charade going strong.