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After the chaos of the mating run, the results, the frenzied cheering and shrieking- Wise was glad to get back to his own room in Random Play. Peace, quiet, his own nest….time for relaxation after the most eventful few hours of his entire life. He was ready to fall into his nest and pass out for at least half a day.
Lighter was with him, of course. Of course! Newly mated pairs were supposed to stay in close vicinity for at least a week, and Belle was almost ridiculously enthusiastic to have an excuse to stay with her mate, Miyabi, and leave the house to her brother.
“Please- say less! If we had time, we could totally have a celebration- I mean, Wise, who would have expected you to actually bag an Alpha! But I wanna get to Miyabi’s before it’s too late in the evening. I’m taking the car, by the way,” Belle says while she haphazardly packs a bag, stuffing clothes and god knows what else into the duffel. This time, Wise is the one to idly watch her from afar, sitting on Lighter's lap.
The act is less sexual than it is evidence the alpha can't be away from Wise for more than a minute. Even having to leave him with Belle for a conversation with Caesar that took, like, max five minutes had Lighter looking back at Wise every few seconds. Just to make sure he was still there. Were alphas supposed to be that clingy after mating, or was that just the kind of person Lighter was?
Which…..well, either way, it's not bad, really. Wise is comfortable and warm. He likes feeling Lighter’s strong arms around his waist, and the occasional possessive nuzzle to his still fresh mating bite. Whenever Wise turns his head to look at him, he’s greeted by what he can only describe as adoring puppy eyes. His mate just....looking at him with an intensity that makes Wise shiver. And when he shivers, Lighter pulls him in tighter, like he’s cold and not merely mildly overwhelmed.
"Alright! I'm out, boys- have fun!" Belle chirps, hiking the bag over her shoulder. They all exit her room, which is firmly off limits otherwise, and she shoos the pair off towards Wise's room. "I'm capable of locking the door, bro. See you in a week!" With that, Belle practically skips out of the store.
"Well then, sweetheart- shall we?" Lighter rumbles, already moving before Wise can even respond. The man carries Wise into his room, gently placing him into the nest on his bed. Wise immediately curls up in his nest, delighted to be returned home, when his instincts nudge at him. He looks up. Lighter has knelt down, leaning against the bed and watching Wise.
Wrong, his mind supplies, and Wise doesn't need to consult his instincts to know why.
"What are you doing out there, alpha? Come in," He says, sitting up slowly and gesturing to his nest.
Lighter looks hesitant for a moment, before tugging off his boots and clambering over the walls of the nest as careful as he can. "Didn't wanna assume," He mutters, to which Wise just shakes his head.
"It's fine. You're my alpha, now, aren't you?" Lighter frantically nods, "And if we're going to get to be together the whole week....then I want you in my nest all the time, so that it smells like us," Wise smiles, then grabs Lighter's arm and tugs him to lay down with him. "Anyway. I'm sleepy, so you'll stay with me, right?" The man is like a furnace- Wise doesn't bother layering some of the blankets of his nest over him. All he has to do is snuggle in, and he's surrounded with warmth.
"Of course, darlin', I'll stay here as much as I can..." The alpha says helplessly, "Y'must be tired from everything and- ah, well, I can't say I'm not either...." He buries his face in Wise's hair, and then against his neck, nose bumping against the scent glands and causing a fresh wave of pine to flood the room.
"I told you before, you worked way harder than I did during that run..." Wise murmurs, reaching up to stroke his hair, "Get some rest, Lighter. I won't go anywhere,"
"Promise?"
"Promise."
---
It still didn't feel quite real.
Being mated, that was. When Lighter put Wise back down on his own two feet to speak with Caesar about his inevitable extended absence- he almost expected to turn back around and find that he was just talking to his own deathbed hallucinations.
"Thank god we have Pulchra," Caesar cheerfully remarks, "Between her, Burnice, and Piper- I think we'll be covered. An' since me and Lucy will be down there anyway, so don't worry your head about spendin' some time with your mate, Lighter. The Sons of Calydon'll be fiiiiiine. "
Lighter still frowns. "Well- y'know how to reach me, anyway."
"Yeah, yeah!" Caesar companionably smacks Lighter's shoulder with too much force. Ouch. "Go on, get- I gotta get my own quality time, yanno! Stop worrying!"
He still felt uneasy, a feeling Lighter couldn't shake off. But he laughed anyway, and turned around to go back to Wise.
And what'ddya know, the second he picked up his mate- everything was okay again. Wise was a solid weight in his arms, undoubtedly real. His bashful, embarrassed face incredibly kissable. (Lighter couldn't help but smacking a kiss on Wise's cheek, earning a cute, surprised noise. God damn. )
Whatever last, sane braincell Lighter had told him that this was probably a mating bond thing- the reason why new mates needed to be close. Maybe Lighter's alpha senses were just going a touch too far with it all, but whatever. He kissed his mate's other cheek and got a cute, scrunched up nose for his trouble. Hell yeah.
After that, Lighter didn't let Wise go until he was depositing him in his nest. Belle had left to give them privacy, and now it was just him, Wise, and Wise's nest.
And Wise's room, Wise's scent, Wise's everything. He wanted to touch his darling, looking so comfortable and soft in his nest, so sweet. But- he was a good, polite alpha for Wise. Or....at least that's what he told himself he would try to be. And good, polite alphas didn't come into an omega's nest unless invited, so that meant Lighter was kneeling on the floor, leaning against the bed and watching Wise settle in.
Christ, he wanted to touch him so bad. Only being basically suffocated in Wise's clean scent kept him from doing something pathetic- like whining or something.
Lighter doesn't have to dwell on their separation for long, however.
"What are you doing out there, alpha? Come in," Wise says. The magic words Lighter was waiting for.
He tries not to look too impatient while he takes off his boots and climbs into the nest. "Didn't wanna assume," Lighter mutters, pushing down his embarrassment.
But even that is another negative feeling that evaporates once he's properly in Wise's nest, and has the omega clinging to him. Strong arms gather the omega close to him, and Wise snuggles into him without even a moment of hesitation.
Lighter promises he'll stay in Wise's nest as long as he wants. Wise tells him he wants his nest to smell like them, and if he wasn't so goddamn drained, he'd flip Wise onto his back and make good on that. But being as he was now, arms full of his sweetheart, resting in his nest- Wise tells him to go to sleep, and Lighter is out. His libido will just have to wait.
(He sleeps dreamlessly. He dreams of not dreaming. He dreams of being relieved to not dream. He dreams about snow and pine trees and kissable cheeks. He dreams of a comforting darkness. He doesn't dream at all. )
Awareness comes not with sight, but with smell. Many smells. A lack of smells. A lack of warmth. A lack of Wise-
Lighter jerks up from sleep, scrambling out of the nest, hindbrain 100% in control, because mate is not in the nest, skidding on the floor, down the stairs- omega, where, where, find- ah.
Wise is downstairs, pouring hot water from an electric kettle over two cups of instant noodles. He seems startled to see Lighter.
....
Well, considering Lighter had just appeared like a bat out of hell, he supposes he'd be startled too.
Wise recovers first. Probably because he wasn't half asleep.
"Ah....I didn't think you'd wake up so soon!" Wise sounds apologetic. "Did I scare you? I'm sorry, you were sleeping so deep, I didn't really have the heart to wake you. I just wanted to make- oh!"
Lighter closes the distance between them and takes the kettle from Wise's hands, sets it down on a secure, flat surface, and crushes Wise against him.
"Goddamnit, darlin'- woke up without you, couldn't find you, scared the shit outta me," Lighter grumbles, rubbing their scent glands together, licking Wise's mating bite. Possessive things that quiet the alpha's distressed rage.
Wise is pliant, and lets himself be scented and licked with only the tiniest of noises. Considering the shocking stench of scared-out-of-his-wits alpha that accompanied Lighter's appearance.....poor thing. He reaches up and pets Lighter's hair reassuringly. "I'm sorry, alpha- I just wanted to make breakfast, I didn't mean to scare you," He coos.
"Lemme make breakfast," Lighter grumbles into Wise's skin, "Instant noodles aren't breakfast. Y'need some real food in ya today. Show me yer fridge and stove and I'll make you something proper."
"Ah..." Wise looks around, awkward, "About that.....we have...a minifridge, and....a hot plate, but that's it. Um, and the minifridge is...basically empty. Except for some soda. And pudding. Oh, and there's a microwave we found for cheap- I think you saw that stuff in my room? Belle dumped the hot plate on the desk before she left, she was hoarding it for a while..."
Lighter lifts his head up and looks Wise square in the eye.
"Alright then, darlin'- here's what we're going to do. I'm gonna get you cleaned up, and we're going to go the nearest shop and I'm going to cook you a goddamn decent meal."
"Never pegged you for the type to cook, huh...."
"Oh, sweetheart. There's a lot you don't know about me. We're going to get you fed right. Didn't notice it before, but yer kinda- scrawny, aren'tcha?" Lighter gropes around Wise's body, to which Wise makes a strangled sound and pulls at Lighter's hands to stop.
"Wh- hey! Don't- ah, it's fine, I've always been like this, don't worry-"
"Hmmmm, I dunno, babe- I think as your alpha, s'my job to worry. Now, lets get'cha all clean and decent for society." Lighter hefts Wise back up into his arms, and marches right back up the stairs. Somewhere in the conversation, Lighter's fear for Wise morphed into the realization that he needed to provide, stat. There was no way his omega was going to survive off of instant noodles for breakfast, absolutely not.
Lighter himself had to eat well, what with his muscle mass and the rigors of beating up every idiot in the nearest fifteen mile radius, and then some. That meant he had to rely on his own two hands to make himself a meal that left him satisfied. But he cooked for the girls' plenty, too, and got their feedback on his recipes.
And even though it might be pretty basic Outer Ring fare- well, he was extremely sure it was better than instant noodles.
(After all, Wise would need the extra calories for later. Heh.)
---
Lighter carries Wise right upstairs and into the bathroom, placing his omega down so that he can yank their clothes off for the second time that day.
This time, Wise protests.
"Wh- I can take off my own clothes- hey!" He's almost impressed at how fast Lighter strips him, "How do you do that so fast..."
The older man shrugs, tossing his own clothes aside without a second thought. "S'practical, ain't it? Faster you strip, faster you're clean."
"But...." Wise looks at his somewhat sticky skin as Lighter putters around to turn on the showerhead, "What if I like smelling like you?" It seemed almost offensive to wash it all off so quickly.
"Aw, babe. Promise, there's more where that came from. But for now, can't scandalize the little ol' ladies while we shop. "
It's an oddly peaceful experience, washing up together. Wise had kind of expected it to be sexually charged, given....well, everything. And he couldn't say he didn't get a little hot seeing Lighter bare again, but....well.....how could anyone not? It was normal. Normal!!!
....anyway. Lighter seemed to visibly sigh once the hot water really started to kick in, steam rising between them. Wise couldn't help but glance at him, intrigued by the hidden facets of the man slowly making their appearance. The scars that flushed pink under the scalding spray. The odd little hum under his breath when he rinsed off. How he looked with his hair slicked back with water, oddly vulnerable without it hanging in his face.
They didn't bother filling the bathtub- if they got in, they might never get out, and they had plans. Lighter had plans. They got out of the shower, and Lighter took visible joy in towelling Wise down and wrapping it around him like a blanket.
"S'cause you're cute," He says sheepishly, not mentioning that the concepts of Wise and blankets were forever entwined in his mind. And seeing the real thing, even if only with a towel.......worth it. Wise scrunches his nose (cute!!!) and then.....reaches up to muss Lighter's damp hair up with his hands, causing Lighter to pull harder on the towel, and Wise falls forward against him, and.....
....
.........
"Lighter," Wise coos.
"....yes, darlin'?" Lighter sounds visibly pained.
"Let's get hotpot delivered instead."
"....sweetheart, please."
"......we can order groceries? I think I have an app for that."
Lighter groans, leaning back against the bathroom counter.
"Fine. Fine. But I'm orderin' before you get me all distracted."
"It's a deal."
---
Lighter takes far too long to order, in Wise's opinion. He's sitting on Wise's computer chair, a pair of sweats on him, frowning over Wise's phone.
Wise, on his part, amusedly gazes at him from his nest. Lighter must be serious about this, he figures. Choosing to carefully order groceries over ravishing your nude mate in their nest? Damn.
It was no insult to Wise, though. He just thought it was cute- the way Lighter's brow furrowed as he scrolled through the options on the app. So determined to get whatever it was he needed for the next meal.
"A'ight," Lighter finally says after a time, bringing Wise's phone back and placing it on the bed shelf. "I think we'll have some time to fool around before the delivery comes- now lemme see ya, baby. Waited all nice and patient for me, after all."
He climbs back into the nest just as Wise rolls over from his stomach to on his back. Without the haze of a first meeting between them, Lighter can loom over Wise and cage him in against his blankets.
He looks soft. Relaxed. Skin warm and slightly damp from the earlier shower. Lighter's hand slides down Wise's side, and the other soon joins it, coming together at his waist when his fingers touch.
"See?" Lighter purrs, "Skin and bones, babe. Howsit that your waist fits like that in my hands?"
Wise makes a protested noise, flushing. "Your hands are big, obviously," Wise whines. Lighter can only smile helplessly in response. Those hands squeeze possessively for a long moment before moving on.
"And what about these?" Pink nipples are thumbed at, squeezed, pinched. Wise gasps and arches upwards into Lighter's dangerous grasp.
"What about those?!"
"Hm, nothing. I just think they're cute. Y'made some pretty noises when I sucked on them last time...." Lighter pinches and tugs them again; Wise's answering cry is a welcome refresher for all of the noises his darling can make.
"See? Gorgeous. Seeing y'squirm over having yer tits played with makes me hard as a rock....sweet, precious thing that you are. Kiss?" Lighter offers Wise a bashful smile. Asking for things from his sweetheart already, huh?
Regardless, Lighter leans in and Wise obediently meets him halfway, kissing him sweetly.
"Can't get enough of you, really...." Lighter murmurs, "When ya get all wet for me, smells like honeyed lemonade and sweet spring. Baby's blooming just for me."
"Does it?" Wise pants a little. He's impatient to have Lighter inside him before their food is delivered, so he makes the executive decision to push things along. "How bad...do you wanna take me?" He doesn't know Lighter's secret weaknesses yet, so he'll have to start with some general goading.
"Oh, sweetheart, can't you tell?" Lighter pushes his sweatpant covered boner against Wise's leg, even grinds against it a little just to take the edge off.
"And that's for me?"
"Just for you, darlin'"
"So then..." Ah, Lighter already can tell he's going to get the sanity smacked out of him by whatever Wise comes up with. "...you don't wanna put it in me, alpha? When I'm already so wet?"
Wise reaches down and spreads his cunt with his fingers, the slick glistening. "I already need you again..." And that's all it takes to snap the last thread of Lighter's self control. Nice.
Or, that's what Wise would think if Lighter didn't pull his cock out, basically slap his cunt with it, , nudge the fat head into his hole, and then immediately start jackrabbiting into him. Oh, that was probably the sexiest thing that had ever happened in Wise's life.
He can't even complain that Lighter pushed in too fast- he's so wet it isn't even funny. And now that he's more lucid than last time, the sounds of their coupling, as Lighter snaps his hips flush against Wise's....
.....he prayed nobody heard them during the mating run.
There wasn't much more room for thought after that. Lighter's cock hit every good spot inside of him (he didn't even know he had good spots!) and made Wise's vision fill with stars. His lover panted over him, fucking Wise through a messy orgasm that ruined the sheets, and then some.
It's only when Lighter braces his hips against Wise's, a hint of a knot swelling while he cums deep and hot and hard, filling Wise up so good, so hot, perfect......that he realizes something.
Something important.
"....Lighter."
The man in question peppers Wise's face with kisses.
"Yeah, sugar? What, y'hear the delivery guy at the door?"
"No....that's not it, um. I just remembered, uh. I.....haven't taken anything?"
"Anything, for wh- wait. You mean that?"
"Yeah."
"And....ya didn't take the pills they give ya before the run?"
"I didn't think I'd find someone! I mean...I just went to placate everyone, just like you."
"....darlin', I've blown at least three loads into you just today. My plans for the week? Keeping you in this nest and fuckin' you until this right here-" Lighter traces a finger over Wise's pubic mound, "-is molded for my cock."
".....I'll...see if I can order some plan B."
Lighter exhales gustily, slumping over Wise. "Guess that's all we can do. And s'not all your fault, babe. I shoulda remembered to use a condom, at least. If it helps, I think you'd look real pretty all bred up and full," He nuzzles against Wise's cheek, who levels a weak glare at him. "...not that you will, since, the plan B, an' all. But yanno."
"We barely know each other!"
"And I look forward to gettin' to know ya better every day for the rest of my life, of course."
Wise gives up, head falling back. He was quickly realizing it was impossible to resist Lighter's sincerity, wrapped up in the most handsome face he'd ever seen. He was so....sweet. It made it hard to be mad at him for long. "You're taking responsibility. And paying for the meds."
"It'd be my pleasure, darlin'. We'll get you your things, and then I'll cook something filling for ya, and you won't have to worry about a thing." If (and that's a big if) Wise was somehow already....well, with a bun in the oven, then it made even more sense for Lighter to cook for him, right? Growing a child would be hard work. And if not, then he'd just keep making sure he'd eat well until they were both ready for one. Fill him out some, get some pudge on his baby.
"I'm not sure I can stop worrying, Lighter...."
"Are ya asking for another round, then, darlin', to clear your head?"
Wise groans, and weakly bops Lighter's head with his hand.
"What? We don't have to," Lighter apologetically presses a kiss against his scent gland, "Jus' wondering."
"Just...stay inside me for now, okay? No moving, and just.....wake me up when the food and stuff's here. I need a nap. Your job is to just...be comfortable to the omega you may or may not have impregnated, got it?" Wise instructs sharply, then sighs and nuzzles his head into the pillows, closing his eyes. "Keep me warm."
"Yessir, will do, angel." Lighter settles the two of them together in a comfortable position, wrapping his arms around Wise. Haha, wouldn't it be funny if he was actually pregnant? Well. Wise wouldn't find it funny. He should keep that as an inside thought, before he gets bopped on the head again by his mate.
Buuuuuuut......it didn't hurt anything to hope. And it made the alpha inside of him preen and posture at the idea of knocking up his baby so fast. Lighter shouldn't feel happy about all this, so he just hides his smile in Wise's hair and reminds himself that thinking won't do any harm.
Wise just keeps his eyes closed and pretends he doesn't smell the clearly pleased pheromones coming off of his mate. Ridiculous, he scoffs internally. But he's cute, the way Lighter nuzzles his hair, and holds him close, so.......he'll let it pass. For now.
Even if it was crazy, even if his silly alpha had knocked the sense out of both of them, to have forgotten to use protection.....the safety and trust Wise felt in his arms regardless.....
He was glad to have an alpha. Moreso, he was glad that alpha was Lighter. He wouldn't admit it, because Wise was committed to making Lighter feel contrite about his actions, but if things did end up going sideways.....well. He trusted Lighter to be with him the whole way through.
With those thoughts in mind, Wise drifted off.
Later, he would wake up alone and cleaned off. Lighter would be in the kitchen, cooking something delicious smelling for him, and his meds would be on the table. Wise would swallow them with a glass of water, and they'd both sit down to eat.
After that- they'd just take it day by day, and see what the future held in store for them.