Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

"Just saying this is a load of bullshit. We as a society have progressed way past this shit." Eddie Munson glared at the park stretched before him and the other candidates for this stupid run.

"So you've already said." The young man's friend Gareth replied with the roll of his eyes. "You don't have to do this."

"I promised Wayne I'd at least try this year." The air around the older boy smelled bitter, letting everyone around him know he wasn't happy. "He said he doesn't want to me to end up alone but I'm pretty sure this is his way of passive aggressively trying to get me to move out." Deep down he knew that probably wasn't true but Eddie was too angry to care. The two boys were separated from the rest of the run's participants. The only boys in the small herd of omegas gathered around the starting line. Both boys stuck out like sore thumbs compared to the girls next to them. Male omegas were already pretty rare, Eddie doubted there would be any alphas participating in this archaic event that would be willing to claim a mate like him. "I still don't know why you'd willingly sign up for this."

"It's romantic! Having someone chase after you and deciding to be with you forever."

"Did you know that before claiming bites were a thing, Alphas used to pee on their mated to mark them? Incredibly romantic." Eddie smirked at the face his band mate made.

"Ew, that's disgusting."

"But true." Eddie glanced over at a few of the girls from their school huddled together whispering to each other. "What's up with them?"

"Steve Harrington's running this year. Heard his parents are trying to get him married as soon as possible."

"I feel bad for whoever gets stuck with that asshole." Eddie only talked to Steve "The Hair" Harrington a few times but it was always whenever the king decided to grace the lonely goth with insults along with the rest of his asshole Alpha buddies. Omegas were supposed to be sweet and obedient. Eddie wasn't that and thus and easy target. He just hoped to get this over as soon as possible.

The sound of a gunshot signaling the start of the run had everyone running, including Gareth. Eddie meandered for a moment deciding if he would really do this. Wandering into woods ahead and deciding he'd wajt this out somewhere an eager Alpha wouldn't think to look. His eyes settling on a large tree nearby, walking over and beginning to climb high enough to maybe watch the chaos going on.

~~

"-did you hear?"

"Huh?" Steve looked up from the shoes he'd been tying when Tommy elbowed him in the side. "Hear what?"

"Munson's running this year." Tommy laughed loudly. "Like anyone would actually claim that freak as their own." The other boy took his shirt off to reveal his chest, the scent of pine hitting Steve straight in the face hard enough to gag. The amount of Alpha machismo that permeated the air around the small crowd was almost suffocating. It might not have been so bad if Steve actually wanted to be there.

Steve Harrington was a known ladies man at school and he was happy to keep it that way but as soon as he turned eighteen, his parents told him he needed to find a proper mate to settle down with and carry on the Harrington legacy. It was either this or get kicked out so there wasn't much of a choice there. Even worse, the only girl he had his eyes on was already here. Nancy Wheeler stood a few feet away talking to some guy he didn't recognize, having just presented last month. An Alpha, looking for an Omega. Tommy noticed his staring and gave him a pat on the shoulder.

"Don't worry Steve, there's plenty of bitches in the sea. I'm sure you can find someone else." Tommy laughed.

"I guess." Nancy was special. He doubted whoever he got stuck with would be half as good as she was. Steve's thoughts were cut off by the sound of a gun shot that signaled the start of the run. Everyone started springing and for a moment Steve considered following Nancy but decided that would be way too creepy. Instead jogging as far away from everyone else as possible and coming to a stop.

'This is total bullshit.' Steve thought as he leaned against the base of a tree. Trying to come up with excuses to give his parents if he didn't come home with mate. He liked Nancy. But Alphas didn't date other Alphas. His parents would probably be pissed if he brought anything less than the perfect mate home.

'You know what, fuck them.' Steve thought as he kicked the oak tree he'd been leaning against. 'I'll bring home whoever the fuck I want and they'll have to deal with it.'

There was the loud cracking of something above the young man that made Steve look up.

"What the hell-?"

Steve barely had time to react as he saw a figure falling. Scrambling for a moment to catch the body. The force knocking him to the ground and for a moment he blacked out. Opening his eyes again to see Eddie Munson on his lap, nursing his head.

"Munson?" Steve asked confused as the older boy crawled off of him to let the other teen sit up. "Did...did you just fall out of a tree?"

Chapter Text

"So you don't want to actually be my mate?" Eddie asked as he sat on the forest floor across Steve who nodded.

"Right."

"You just want to use me to get your parents off your back."

"That's the idea."

"And you don't expect me to have your babies or anything, right?"

"Pfffttt, no." Steve laughed. Maybe a little too loudly. "I mean unless you want to-"

"No."

"Then no. You don't."

"Okay so....what's in it for me?" The goth asked as he brushed some of his hair to the side. "No offense but you're not my type."

"I'll pay you to pretend to be my mate." Eddie made a face this.

"I'm not some charity case Harrington."

"I know, I'm paying you for a service. Come on, I've seen that beat up guitar you carry around. Imagine what you could do with an actual brand name." Eddie's nose scrunched up as he raised a hand to his chin in thought. "Please? I'll do anything."

"Anything? Like...even helping me pass Mrs. O'Donnell's class?"

"Yes." Steve nodded. Eddie let out a dramatic sigh before sticking his hand out for the other boy to take.

"Yeah fine. But I'm not fucking you. Try anything and I'll lay you the fuck out. Got it?"

"Got it." Steve agreed as he shook Eddie's hand before they both stood up. "Okay so, I'm going to have to mark you."

"Yeah, yeah I know the deal." Eddie pulled his hair back into a ponytail to reveal his pale neck. Most of the time Eddie Munson smelled off putting and bitter. But now he was greeted by a sweet almost fruity smell. It reminded Steve of apple pie. Steve stood frozen as he looked Eddie over when the metalhead prodded. "You just gonna stare or...?"

"Oh. Right, yeah." Steve approached, standing behind Eddie and trying to make this the least sexy thing possible. His face heating up as his mouth grazed the edge of Eddie's throat. Teeth brushed against skin until the Alpha finally settled at the joint between Eddie's neck and shoulder and the jock's teeth plunged down. It was just hard enough to break skin and die a moment Steve felt heat rush to his face. The grip he had on Eddie's elbow tightened and he was overwhelmed by the Omega's presence.

"Ow! Watch it Harrington. That fucking hurts." Immediately Steve snapped back to his senses and he pulled away.

"Sorry." Steve looked down to see the Omega's blood on his mouth and shirt. "I couldn't- it was like I-"

"It's fine Harrington. Don't go creaming your pants or whatever." Eddie grabbed the handkerchief out if his back pocket and wiped away the blood. "So, what do we do now?"

~~

"Mom, dad, this is Eddie. We met at the mating run. Quite the catch. Isn't he?"

The Harrington house was big. A lot bigger than the Munson trailer. Steve led Eddie into the living room where the jock's parents were waiting. It was clear from the faces they made when they saw the metalhead that they were not impressed by his presence.

"What is that?" The man asked as he gestured to Eddie. Not who. What.

'Well this guys a douche.' Eddie thought as he tried his best to hold back a comment.

"My mate. His name's Eddie Munson."

"Is this some kind of joke?" The woman asked, clearly aghast.

"Joke?" Steve asked with a clearly faux innocence. "Why would I be joking? You said you wanted me to find a good Omega and last I checked, Eddie's an Omega. Isn't that right?"

"Ugh. Yeah." It felt like Steve's father was trying to set him on fire with his mind as he glared Eddie, more specifically the claiming bite on his neck, down.

"Can we speak in the other room?" The man said as he grabbed his son by the wrist and led him into the kitchen with Mrs. Harrington trailing close behind. Eddie idling for a few seconds before quietly sneaking over listen in on the Harringtons.

"-really Steven, you could've done so much better." The mother's voice said.

"A Munson, for God's sake boy. I could smell the pot coming off him the second you brought him in the door."

"Give him a chance. I know Eddie's a little...rough around the edges..." It took everything Eddie had not to laugh at that Understatement. "But he's everything you asked for." There was the sound of shuffling before Steve's father spoke again.

"They need us in Aspen. We'll be back by the end of the month. You have until then to show that little gutter rat how to be a proper Omega or you'll both be put on the street. Do you understand Steven?"

"....yes sir." Eddie heard the sound of them moving around before a door slammed. Peeking in, the goth saw Steve now alone. Hesitating a moment before approaching the other teen and speaking.

"Are you okay?" Eddie asked. Steve shook his head.

"It's fine. I'm sorry you had to hear that."

"Your parents sound like assholes." Steve just nodded in agreement. The metalhead's thinking for a moment before an idea struck him. "Hey, let's head over to my place. You can meet Wayne. He's not gonna believe this."

Chapter Text

Wayne Munson wasn't sure what to think of the Alpha his nephew brought into their trailer. The boy was around the same age as Eddie. Only taller because of his primped hair, the young man squirmed under the older man's gaze.

"Wayne, this is Steve. Steve Harrington." Eddie supplied and Wayne raised an eyebrow.

Wayne Munson never expected his nephew to actually bring a mate back. When he suggested the mating run, he didn't think Eddie would actually participate. Yet here he was with a distinctly Alpha young man. A Harrington. One of the richest families in town. Wayne knew his nephew. And he knew that his boy would rather drop dead before he even considered being mated by someone like Steve Harrington. The uncle scrutinized the other teen before glancing over at Eddie's neck where there was a prominent claiming bite. His boy looked nervous and it made Wayne frown. Something was off here.

"You.," Wayne pointed at Steve, "Wait outside. I'm going to have a talk with Eddie."

"Y-yes sir!" Steve scrambled out of the trailer, closing the door behind him. Wayne waiting a moment to pick the door when he turned to face Eddie.

"Did he force himself on you?" Wayne asked as his face hardened.

"What?"

"I've seen the way you two were acting round each other. That boy claim you without asking?" Wayne was a Beta but he'd learned to be intimidating around Alphas who got too big for their britches. "You can tell me if he did. I'll rip his fucking balls off-"

"No! God Wayne, it's nothing like that." Eddie interjected. "I let him do this. We're just...getting used to this whole mating thing."

"Hmm." Wayne grunted as he looked Eddie over before nodding his head. "Fine. But if that boy tries anything, I'll kill him with my bare hands."

"Wayne, I can take care of myself." Eddie was an Omega but it didn't mean he was defenseless.

"I know. I'm just worried. You know what kind of power Alphas can have over Omegas." Wayne said and Eddie frowned. "I don't want you to end up like your momma."

"I won't. Steve's not like that." Not like his father.

Wayne eyed his nephew before going over to the window next to the door. Prying the blinds open just enough to peek out onto the porch where Steve was waiting. Eddie followed his uncle's line of vision over to the boy standing by the the door. Steve was staring into his reflection on the door as he tried to fix his hair.

"See? Look at him, he wouldn't even hurt a fly." Eddie watched as his uncle's eyes narrow before letting out a loud sigh.

"I suppose. Just don't go having pups right away. I'm too young to be a grandpa."

"I don't think that's going to be a problem." Eddie rolled his eyes when Wayne went over to the door and pulled it open to allow Steve back in. Wayne gesturing for the slightly taller boy to enter.

"You better treat my boy right Harrington." Wayne leaned in to whisper into Steve's ear. "Or else."

"Y-yes sir." Steve turned visibly paler at the quiet threat and Eddie struggled to hold back a snort. Maybe this wouldn't be too bad after all.

Chapter Text

Mating jewelry, while not required, was a very important symbol in relationships. Alphas specially hand crafting a sign of their love for the person they cherished the most. But now a days, it was considered cheesy as hell. Still, that didn't stop Steve from heading to the jewelry store in the mall in hopes of finding something to impress his kind of, not really, mate.

It was a busy Sunday afternoon when Steve arrived at the shop near the corner of the mall. Approaching the counter near the front, Steve was greeted by a collection of big, bright gemstones that demanded attention. Every time Steve's mother came home, she was wearing something new his father bought. To some people, it would seem like his father cared about his mother. But Steve knew it was him establishing his ownership over her. She'd been very eager to tell a nine year old Steve this while black out drunk.

"I never wanted you. " He clearly remembered her saying as she laid spread out over the sofa in their foyer. Barely maintaining her grip on the glass of wine in her hand. They had a party earlier that night and his dad disappeared upstairs with one of his "friends" from work. His mother responded the only way she could, by trying to drink enough to forget about everything around her. Steve couldn't remember why he came downstairs that night. He was supposed to stay in his room when they had grown-up parties. Yet he still ended up in the living room, staring up in confusion at his mother as she stumbled to her feet. Letting out a strangled groan as she almost tripped over her child. Her neck was in his face, adorned by the necklace his father gave her. A choker that he now realized was more of a collar.

"God, you look just like him," she slurred out, "he took me when he knew I didn't have a choice. Now I'm stuck with a cheating prick of a husband and a disappointment for a kid." The woman took another sip of the wine. "Why couldn't you have been a girl? Maybe I could at least stand you if...if..." She trailed off before she could finish, the glass of wine falling on the floor before she completely passed out. It was one of the few times Steve saw his mom's real face. Not the one she put on to look like a picture-perfect family.

The memory faded and Steve was back in the jewelry shop. Staring down at the case specifically for mating jewelry. Frowning at the diamond necklace on a headless mannequin. Maybe this wasn't a good idea...

"Do you need help finding anything?"

Steve jumped at the voice, turning to see a store attendant smiling at him. The woman was a few years older than him. Her name tag read Olivia.

"Ugh, I don't know." Steve reached into his jacket, fishing around in his pocket and pulling out one of the rings he (temporarily) stole from Eddie to get an idea for size. Pulling it out revealed a silver skull with its teeth bared. Olivia's eyes fell on the ring and she raised an eyebrow at the piece of metal. "He doesn't know I'm here. And he thinks stuff like this is out of date and weird, but I want to show him this is important to me."

"And he's an omega?" Steve nodded.

"Yeah. I don't want to be one of those guys who's weirdly possessive about this kind of thing but I still want to get him something nice." Steve held the ring out to the woman who took it. Looking the piece over with a loud hum before she spoke.

"I think I have something you might be interested in." Steve followed her to the curtained off area. Waiting as she pulled it back to reveal shelves upon shelves of cases. Steve did his best not to focus on the way her body was positioned in front of him. As far as she knew, he already had a mate. Instead, he stared at the carpeted floor and waited until she let out a small "a-ha!". Looking up, Steve watched as she pulled away with a small box. It was covered in a thin layer of dust. The woman wiped it away before opening it to reveal a small silver band. Pulling it out, she revealed it was a braided snake eating its own tail. Glints of purple and red shone through the loops to represent scales. "We got this one in a while ago. It's called the Ouroboros. It's not our shiniest piece, but it seems in line with your partner's tastes."

If there was any jewelry piece in the world that screamed Eddie, this was it. Looking at the price tag at the edge of the box, Steve already knew Eddie would freak if he found out Steve spent this much on him, but it was a goodwill gift more than anything. He didn't need to know how much it actually cost.

"I'll take it."

Chapter Text

Eddie remembered the day he presented vividly. It was his junior year of high school, and he sat near the back of his second period science class. Mrs. Waters was droning on and on about the mitochondria while he doodled in his notebook, only half paying attention. He was a late bloomer. People usually presented in their middle school years, but the teen never showed any signs of the big life change. Eddie was more than happy to stay like this. He was already a freak. Why did he have to worry about the societal norms associated with secondary genders?

It seemed his body took exception to that thought as Eddie felt his body suddenly...shift. Dropping his pencil and falling back slightly, Eddie struggled to keep his body upright. A sudden pang traveled through his body and hit him in the gut. Hard. Hard enough to knock the wind out of him as his legs trembled. A dawning horror came over him as everything around him suddenly began to smell stronger. He was presenting in the middle of a fucking science class. The goth didn't bother to raise his hand and ask. Instead, he ran past the confused teacher, down the hall, and to the nearest bathroom where he ducked into the first stall and slammed the door shut behind him

"No, no, no, no, no." He cursed quietly as his senses began to overwhelm him. The buzzing of the florescents above him, the smell of the urine on the floor, his jeans-fuck, why were his jeans suddenly way too tight? Eddie was frantic to get his pants off, practically tearing them off his body with a pained yowl. Looking down at his boxers, Eddie froze when he saw the blood. His brain was muddled by the blurred senses, but it understood what all of this meant. He was an omega. A male omega. A freak among freaks. And he was in the middle of a hormone addled high school full of knot headed assholes who would be more than happy to take advantage of anyone in his situation.

Eddie couldn't stop himself as he fell to the floor, ignoring the way it made his body flare up in pain. Eddie brought his knees up to his chest and buried his face in his legs as he began to sob loudly. This was it. His life at the school, in this town, was completely over.

"Hey, are you okay in there?"

Eddie jumped at the knock on his stall door. His head turned to see a pair of white and blue Nikes facing him through the crack of the stall.

"Wh-what do you think?" Eddie snapped through hiccups. His head was on fire now, just like the rest of his body. He could smell himself now, the odor tinged with the pain he was currently going through. "Ow...." The goth hissed as he clutched his turning stomach.

"What happened? Did you get hurt or-" Nikes approached him but stopped less than a foot away, probably overwhelmed by the newly presented Omega's scent. "Oh, wow."

"Yeah." Eddie wiped his runny nose with the sleeve of his leather jacket. "Some time to fucking present, huh? In the middle of this shit hole school...fuck it hurts." He whimpered out. Watching as Nikes feet moved before a shuffling sound could be heard. Despite everything, Eddie was still on his guard. Ready to run if the other boy tried anything. Instead, Nikes hand came into sight with a small white bottle labeled heat suppressants. "Wha?"

"This is your first time, right? Take two every hour. It'll help get rid of the pain." Eddie hesitated for a moment, but another strong pang hitting him in the gut made up his mind for him. Snatching the bottle out of Nikes hands and dry swallowing two of the pills, no problem. For once, he was happy he forgot to eat breakfast so the pulls could work faster.

"Thanks." Eddie grunted out as he struggled to focus on breathing through the pain. Sniffing the air a couple of times where he was greeted by the scent of freshly mowed grass. "You... you don't smell like an omega."

"Oh, I'm not." Nikes said as his feet shifted awkwardly. "I carry these for my girlfriend in case her heat starts early, but you can keep that bottle."

"Thanks." Eddie shifted, trying to ignore the heat that rushed to his face as he spoke to Nikes. Fucking pheromones. "Hey, this might sound weird, but could you just stay here with me? Until the pills start to work?"

"Ugh, yeah! Course! My next class isn't for a while anyway....I'm not sitting on the floor, though." Eddie laughed.

"That's fair. This floor is a cesspool of piss and typhoid." Nikes snickered but didn't say much else after that. The two fell into a comfortable silence as Nikes stood guard in front of Eddie's stall. It had probably been thirty, forty?, minutes before Eddie was able to comfortably stand up. His smell was significantly dampened, and it didn't feel like his entire body was on fire. As he began to pull his pants back up, Eddie heard Nikes gather his stuff.

"Hey, I gotta head to class, but congrats on presenting? I think? I don't know what you're supposed to say to someone about this kind of thing."

By the time Eddie got the door open, Nikes had already long since gone. The only evidence he had been there was the bottle of suppressants in the teen's pocket.

It had been years since the incident, and only now was Eddie aware that Steve Harrington, his supposed mate, was Nikes. A tiny part of his brain, the one he went out of his way to supress most of the time, wondered if that meant something.

Chapter Text

"Look at him, thinking he's so much better than everyone else when he's just some uppity omega."

"You think you're different than every other omega out there? You're just a weak little bitch who doesn't know his place."

The hand on Eddie's neck pushed down harder as he was forced to look down at the gravel road the basketball team dragged him out to. It was late, probably past ten. No one around to hear his cries and howls of pain. Well, no one willing to help, anyway. The metalhead could feel the blood pouring down from his now almost definitely broken nose. Eddie glared at the ground as he struggled to keep his cool. Two Alphas were on either side of him, holding his arms out. Two other players, one Alpha and one Beta, were close enough to add to the smell overwhelming Eddie's senses. But the worst of all of them was Jason Carver. Newly crowned basketball captain and the Alpha of all Alphas at their school. Most people were too terrified or awe struck to even look at him the wrong way. Then again, most people weren't Eddie Munson.

In all honesty, he didn't even go out of his way to antagonize Jason this time. It had just started at lunch when Eddie saw the way the guy talked to his girlfriend. Chrissy Cunningham was one of the nicest girls in their grade. She was kind and smelled like blueberries on a warm summer day. She also happened to head cheerleader and an omega, so it wasn't too surprising she ended up with Jason. But like the Alphas, Wayne warned him about growing up, Jason happily exerted his power over Chrissy at any given chance. Telling her what to do, where to go, what to wear....and today what to eat.

"Come on, babe, we have a game tonight."

"Jason, it's just a salad." Eddie had been scribbling in his notebook when he heard them talking. Looking up, the school outcast glanced over to the couple, where he found Jason grabbing Chrissy's lunch tray.

"Yeah, but you wanna look your best for me, right? Maybe you can eat after the game."

"But-"

"You wanna lose weight, don't you?" Jason poked her in the stomach, and she visibly winced away. "I mean, unless you want to get fatter."

That was what snapped Eddie to action. Seeing that stupid smirk on the face of someone who knew they could get away with saying such bullshit. Not this time.

"Hey! Carver!" Eddie called out. Both he and Chrissy looked up to see Eddie striding over. "Don't you think that's enough?"

"What the hell are you talking about, Munson?" Jason practically growled out his last name. "Go back to your table and butt out of this." The command almost made Eddie stagger. Even with the dampening effects courtesy of his scent blockers, Eddie's body still screamed at him from deep down to 'obey.'

"Why would I do that with the little show you have going on here." It took even more strength to reach over and grab Chrissy's tray, yanking it away from him and giving it back to the cheerleader. "You know Jason, I already knew you were a socially conformist control freak, but you should at least have the decency to treat your girlfriend like a person." By now more and more of the cafeteria was starting to pay attention to them as Jason tried to glare a hole through Eddie who just laughed. "Then again, I probably shouldn't be surprised. You're just one of those stupid assholes who go around, swinging a metaphorical dick because they don't have a real one." Eddie supposed he shouldn't have been too surprised when the jock grabbed him by the front of his shirt and lifted him off the ground with a snarl.

"Who the fuck do you think you're talking to, Munson?" Jason snapped, his full Alpha voice coming out as Eddie felt his legs start to tremble slightly.

"Jason -" Chrissy got up and put a hand on his shoulder, but he slapped it away.

"You stay out of this." He commanded, and she backed away out of instinct before quickly stopping herself.

"No."

"Excuse me?" Jason glared at Chrissy, letting go of this metalhead's shirt.

"I said, no." Her voice was shaky but determined. "You don't get to him or me like that. I'm tired of always doing everything you say."

"Chrissy, come on, you can't be serious."

"I am tired of this Jason!" Chrissy raised her voice. "And I'm tired of you."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?"

"It means I'm done. We're over." The cheerleader went over and helped Eddie up from where Jason had dropped him on the ground. The blonde snarled, hands clenching, but with the entire cafeteria watching now, he backed down. Instead, he grabbed his bag and began to skulk out of the lunchroom before calling out.

"This isn't over, Munson!"

Eddie was frozen in place as his entire body shook.

"Hey, are you okay?" Chrissy's comforting voice brought the metalhead back to reality as he turned to face the blonde cheerleader.

"Huh? Y-yeah! I'm fine." As fine as he could be when you were dealing with someone like Jason Carver. Chrissy noticed how heavy he was breathing as she ran a hand along his back.

"Thanks, by the way." She smiled, and Eddie shrugged.

"Hey, no one else was gonna talk back to him." Eddie smiled back. "You ugh...you wanna sit at our lunch table?"

"That sounds great." Chrissy smiled in a way Eddie had never seen before. He felt good about standing up to the jock. At least, he did until the end of the day.

School ended a few hours ago. Eddie hung around the park behind the school with his supply, ready to sell to anyone who stopped by. It just started to get dark out when he was packing up for the night when he heard an unfortunately familiar voice behind him.

"Where you going, Munson?" The teen turned to see Jason and a few of his teammates approaching.

"What the hell do you want?" Eddie snarled, getting ready to run as the jock smirked.

"Ah, come on, Munson. Can't we just talk? About that little speech you gave at lunch today?" Eddie ran. Or rather, he tried to. He was quickly stopped by two of the basketball team players grabbing him. "Let's go somewhere more private."

"Come on, Jason, please-"

"Shut up." The blonde demanded with his full Alpha voice. Eddie cursed out his body for complaining as he was dragged away to a waiting car. The entire ride had an oppressive air. Eddie was unable to do anything, wedged between two Jason's buddies in the backseat as they were driven to the edge of town. Eddie's mind raced as he wondered what the hell they were going to do to him.

'This is how I die.' Was the only thing Eddie could think as the car pulled to a stop in front of the abandoned steel works building. That was how Eddie found himself kneeling on the gravel road, absolutely terrified by the fact he might be murdered by a pack of jocks. Jason had punched him twice in the face. The second time was hard enough to break his nose. It hurt to breathe through it as he felt the blood run down his face.

"Please, please don't kill me." Eddie had never felt so pathetic as he begged for his life. Jason just laughed at Eddie's pain as he reached out and grabbed the metalhead by the back of his hair. Eddie let out a whine.

"God, you're so pathetic." Jason snarled as his hand twisted in Eddie's hair. "You're just a freak that no one will ever want." He leaned over and sniffed Eddie's neck, making the older teen freeze. "Hm, you know, under all of that disgusting shit you smoke, you don't smell half bad." He kneeled down and got far too close for Eddie's liking as his lips grazed the brunette's neck. "This feel good freak?" The blonde asked as his teeth grazed Eddie's skin. "You ever wonder what this would feel like? This is what you want, right? Little attention whores like you just need a good fucking to remind you of their place."

"No! No, no, no, no, please." Eddie begged as he struggled against the basketball players' grip. The teen was relieved when Jason pulled away as he laughed. The jock signaled the boys holding Eddie to let go, and he fell to the ground in relief.

"You're garbage, Munson." Jason spat on the crumpled teenager in disgust. "Next time, maybe you should think before you speak."

That had been the worst night of Eddie's life. He'd never felt more helpless.in his entire fucking life. He'd always been distrustful of Alphas, but this made it even worse. Thinking back to that night, Eddie ran a hand along his neck where Steve had bitten him. This wasn't the same thing. He had to reassure himself.

"Hey!" A knock on the front door of the trailer made Eddie turn to see Steve at the screen door with something in his hands. "Can we talk?"