Chapter 14: Chapter 14

Gasps and murmurs surround them as Millan takes the new information in. He’s as shocked as their impromptu audience.

“I can stay? You mean… indefinitely?”

Weston’s features soften.

“Yeah, Mill. You can stay. Indefinitely. I didn’t want to tell you like this, but yeah.”

“Does that mean he’s going to become part of the pack?” a beta asks just loud enough to be heard over the whispers of the crowd.

Millan swallows and looks at Weston, waiting anxiously for his answer.

The Alpha looks uncomfortable. Nervous.

Like he has to deliver bad news and that’s answer enough for Millan.

He isn’t pack. He’s allowed to stay, but he’s not pack.

They’ll tolerate his presence, nothing more. It’s dumb to feel hurt about that.

No other pack has ever extended that much courtesy his way. He knows he doesn’t fit in and should be glad he has found a place that doesn’t chase him away and threaten him of death should he return.

He shouldn’t expect more than that. He shouldn’t.

But his stupid attention craving wolf wants to be accepted, to be part of something, to stop looking from the outside.

“Millan, I-”

“I need to get some air.”

Millan picks his bag up and pushes through the mass of werewolves surrounding them. Walking out the door, although determination is written in every step, it’s heartbreak that grows stronger inside of him.

Why can’t he be a good omega?

Respectful, submissive, gentle, patient. He’s none of those things. Instead, he’s just… rebellious and defective. And a thief.

He wishes he could talk some sense into his younger self. Tell him to stop stirring up trouble and be good, to fall into line and stop questioning authority incessantly.

Then, he wouldn’t have been thrown out in the first place. He wouldn’t be in this mess.

He doesn’t realize that he has shifted into his wolf form, running through the forest until he senses another running wolf next to him.

Weston’s wolf is massive, black fur catching in the fading daylight, powerful muscles working to keep up with Millan whose wolf is absolutely pathetic next to him. Fur a cream white and way smaller in size, he’s almost embarrassed.

Weston tries to block his path, indicating clearly that he wants Millan to stop.

The omega sees the move coming from a mile away and easily jumps over the surprised Alpha.

For a moment, Millan thinks he’ll be left alone until he hears rapid footsteps catching up with him again. He huffs and accelerates, jumping over and under branches and fallen trees, making sharp turns, fleeing habits kicking in.

A thrill of pleasure crawls through his spine when he sees Weston struggling to keep up.

The challenge makes Millan's hair bristle and shifts his focus out of his mind and into his muscles.

Weston is fast and more agile than your typical alpha. He seems to get as much fun out of this as Millan since he gets more than one chance to put Millan to a stop and clearly refrains from doing so.

They run until the sun sets and the crescent moon takes its place.

The last time Millan had so much fun was hunting with his friends nine years ago. Eventually, he slows down, body heavy and out of breath, Weston slowing down next to him, panting just as much.

When Weston signals for them to go back, Millan follows suit without complaining. If he is being honest, he has pushed himself further than he should have when he hasn’t eaten or drunk any water all day.

For some unfathomable reason, his wolf wanted to show off, to impress Weston.

A sudden dizzy spell makes Millan's step falter. His vision blurring for a second has him stopping completely.

Weston halts next to him. Sensing something’s wrong, he shifts back to his human form.

“Millan, are you okay?”

Millan's shift takes up every bit of energy he has left and his vision goes completely black.

*****

When Millan comes back, he’s laying on the floor and Weston is towering over him with worry written all over his face.

“Mill?” Weston’s pitch is higher than usual as he taps Millan’s cheek gently into consciousness.

Millan forces a smile and ignores his dizziness, sitting up against a tree.

“I’m okay, I’m okay... just tired.”

“You haven’t eaten all day, have you? Did you at least drink water?”

Millan winces as he shakes his head no, the movement not helping his vision or his growing headache.

Weston sighs, exasperated.

“You’re going to drive me crazy, aren’t you?”

Millan frowns at that, unsure of what he means. He doesn’t have time to ask since Weston tells him to hop on and shifts back to his wolf form.

It’s twice in not even a week that he’s had to be transported that way. It’s humiliating but he honestly doesn’t think he can make it all the way back without fainting again.

He sighs in defeat and lets himself be carried to Headquarters again, hiding his reddening cheeks in Weston’s fur, breathing in Weston’s comforting scent.

To Millan's dismay, Weston’s scent seems to detain the power of putting him to sleep anywhere and anytime.

When he opens his eyes again, he’s met with Weston’s solid chest carrying him bridal style. The steadiness of Weston’s steps and his scent almost lull him back to sleep until he recognizes the entrance to the main house.

It’s plunged in darkness, completely silent apart from the odd snoring sounds.

Millan is surprised when, instead of carrying him to his room, Weston goes straight to the kitchen, sitting him on the counter facing the stove. He then shoves a chocolate bar and a water bottle in the omega’s hands.

Millan mumbles a thank you and naively thinks that Weston will stop there... As Millan gulps down half of his water, Weston frantically takes out seemingly every item of food in the fridge and the cupboards.

“Weston, you don’t need to- ”

“I’m cooking dinner and you will eat it.”

“Weston, it’s late. We should just go to sleep.”

“Eat your damn chocolate bar, Millan.”

“That’s an odd way of telling me to shut up.”

The sharpness in Weston’s words is effective however and Millan stops protesting.

A feat that not a lot of people have succeeded in.

Millan is impressed, so he eats the chocolate, every bite making him come back to life a little but also making him realize how hungry he is.

The rumble of his stomach elicits a growl from Weston who is frantically stirring something on the stove and mumbling unintelligibly.

Although Millan thinks he catches the words ‘starve’, ‘himself’, ‘idiot’, and ‘mate’, but he must have heard the last one wrong.

Millan catches himself staring at the muscles of Weston’s back while he works and admires how expertly he moves about in the kitchen. He looks like he’s in his element, completely at ease although clearly annoyed at Millan's lack of self care.

Millan moans around the first bite without even thinking about it. Weston has made stir fry in less than fifteen minutes and it’s absolutely amazing.

He’s still perched on the counter as Weston stands between his legs, a satisfied smirk on his face.

“That good, huh?”

“Oh shut up.”

Weston grins wider as Millan inhales his food in a record amount of time.

“So… listen. About the Council’s decision…”

Millan knows where Weston is going with this and has no desire to talk about all the perfectly good reasons why they can’t officially accept him as pack.

He puts his empty plate beside him hastily and hops off the counter, ignoring how his spine tingled when he almost bumped and slide down Weston’s body because the alpha didn’t even stepped back.

“Thanks for the food, it was really good.”

“Millan- ”

Millan is aware of how cowardly he’s being as he backs away towards his room.

“Oh and thanks for the run, too. I had forgotten how great it feels to run with another wolf instead of away from them.” Millan laughs awkwardly while Weston frowns.

Millan is almost out of the kitchen when he hears Weston answer a small “Anytime,“ heavy with disappointment.

Millan feels bad for leaving so abruptly, but he’s never been very good at not disappointing people.

If Weston has any expectations from him, the Alpha needs to get used to the let down.