Chapter Text
Noriaki Kakyoin's hand shook as he gripped the handle of the large glass door in front of him, but the tremor had nothing to do with the cold January air blustering at his back. The long fingers wrapped around the cool metal handle and squeezed it. His breathing was short and fast, his heart was beating wildly in his chest, and a cold feeling started in his stomach and spread throughout his body. He felt like he was going to faint.
Not wanting to let that feeling overwhelm him, Noriaki forced himself to take deep breaths.
Glassdoor.
Flower bed.
Melted snow.
Bicycle.
Puppy.
Bus.
Lamppost.
His therapist had taught him this technique of naming everything around him, to help bring him back to the present moment and to use it whenever he felt paralyzed by anxiety. As skeptical as Noriaki was at first, didn't take long for him to realize that it worked.
With his breathing pattern returning to normal, Noriaki opened his eyes and realized he was gripping the iron handle so hard that his fist had turned white. He relaxed a little bit and pulled out the door to finally enter the gym.
The street noises were replaced by the hum of electronic music and gym machines.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Kakyoin!" The nice lady behind the counter released the turnstile and smiled as he walked past her. "Have a good workout."
It was the third time this week that the same scene was repeated. He always arrived at the gym at four o'clock in the afternoon, after closing his school day. Noriaki was a primary teacher at a public high school in Brooklyn, to get to Manhattan he needed to take an express train and then walk fifteen minutes to arrive at the gym. It was time-consuming to get there, but he had no other choice.
Noriaki would never get used to the luxury of this place. The decor was minimalist, the training equipment was modern, and the snack bar had expensive organic products. It was such a large place that it even had an Olympic-sized swimming pool. Judging by his salary alone and social position, he shouldn't even breathe the same air as the people in this gym. He was lucky, though, to be paying a symbolic amount to be there.
This was thanks to his friend Muhammad Avdol, who worked as a personal trainer and also as a physical education teacher at the same school where Noriaki worked.
The gym owner was Avdol's close friend and generously agreed to make this deal, he only asked Noriaki to go to the gym during less busy hours. The young man accepted the offer on the spot because he knew he needed a lot of physical exercises to aid his treatment and also, it seemed perfect to have a close friend nearby in case something went wrong.
Noriaki was taking three prescription meds and spending half of his salary on psychiatrist appointments, since he had to run away from home, leaving everything he had behind, including the fully furnished apartment he took years to acquire. He grabbed only his documents, some clothes, and personal objects, and that was it. His whole life in a backpack.
The last straw was an argument, which ended in physical violence. Noriaki could still feel the pain from the punches in the pit of his stomach, and the fear. He arrived home late from work due to a blizzard and the battery of his cell phone died, so he couldn't text his ex and let him know he was stuck, that was the main motivation for the aggression.
Noriaki was verbally abused almost every day by his ex, but took him forever to realize this. The episode of physical violence came after months of increased control and jealousy from his partner. At the time, Noriaki was obligated to send pictures of what he was doing every hour, if he didn't reply to instant messages quickly or turn off his cell phone, when he got home he would hear the worst kinds of curses and receive the silent treatment for days.
Not only was the relationship difficult by itself, but Noriaki still suffered from being an omega. Since his manifestation at 16 years old, he was surrounded by prejudice and people who believed that omegas were only good for reproduction, his parents included. Noriaki was supposed to be passive, obedient, and produce as many offspring as possible or he would be worthless. He often couldn't help but be overcome by his instincts, even using heat blockers and scent suppressants. Noriaki hated himself for it.
He went into the locker room to change and caught a glimpse of his reflection in the mirror. He blinked twice in disbelief that the skinny young man, with the deep circles under his eyes, gaunt face, and baggy clothes, was himself. His red hair, which had always been his pride, was dull and had lost its cut. His ex took everything from him, including his vanity, something that has always been such a strong feature of Noriaki. Shaking his head, he pushed that thought away and concentrated on the task of getting dressed.
Black sweatpants, a T-shirt in the same color, as unworn as possible, and sneakers and he was ready to go. When he closed his backpack and work clothes in the locker, he felt someone coming towards him.
Noriaki froze. It was an alpha, he could smell him even from far away. The scent was faint, though, the other man was probably using blockers.
He was wearing only black swim trunks and flip-flops, a towel was thrown over his shoulder, but his wet body was dripping, leaving a trail of water on the floor. He appeared to be the same height as Noriaki's ex and was as handsome as him. Maybe more. He had short, black, wavy hair, slightly tanned skin, teal almond-shaped eyes, and bold eyebrows that frowned as if he was permanently irritated. His physique was typical of a swimmer, with very broad shoulders and a slim waist. Muscular but elongated, he probably spent hours swimming, maybe he was a professional athlete.
Noriaki expected, at some point, he would meet an alpha there, even attending the gym at less busy hours. The neighborhood was rich and therefore had a very high concentration of alphas.
The man greeted him, only raising his eyebrows and head slightly, then turned his attention to the locker next to Noriaki, opening the door with a key.
"G-good afternoon." The red-haired man felt his face burn. His voice was so low that if it weren't for the silence in the locker room, his voice certainly wouldn't be heard.
The alpha was close, and Noriaki couldn't help smelling the delicious woody scent the man exhaled. The omega felt his heart race and blushed so hard, that his face was almost the same color as his hair. He needed to get out of there soon. He couldn't risk triggering his heat ahead of time by smelling an alpha like that, his financial situation at that moment was so bad, that he didn't know how long he would be able to buy suppressors.
Noriaki left the locker room trying not to think about his life situation and went straight to the resistance machines area.
"Good to see you here, buddy! How are you today?" Muhammad approached and grabbed the young red-haired man's shoulder. He was a strong man, but kind, with a wide smile, and very bright brown eyes. The white gym uniform he was wearing made a nice contrast to his black skin. His hair was all braided and was shoulder length. Usually, he let the braids down, but today they were tied back in a ponytail.
Noriaki smiled at his friend, feeling more confident just to see him. It was the first time they met there, during the week, Avdol had students spread across other units of the gym.
Thanks to him, all the recent changes in Noriaki's life happened. Avdol was patient, he took countless cups of coffee between classes having long conversations with the red-haired man. At first, he just let Noriaki vent, but as time passed they started to think of concrete escape plans. Muhammad gave Noriaki all the strength and support he needed to leave the toxic situation at home.
"Not super, you know… Thanks for everything you and Jean have done for me, though. I don't know what I would do without you both."
"Don't worry about that, you know you are like family to us."
Avdol and Jean-Pierre Polnareff were the only friends who didn't leave Noriaki's life during his abusive relationship, no matter how hard his ex tried to push them away. The trio met in college, they all were exchange students. Noriaki was Japanese, Avdol was Egyptian, and Jean-Pierre was French.
The distance from home and cultural shocks bound them forever, the three were always together. It was both comfortable and annoying to have two betas as best friends. Noriaki could be relaxed around them, without being afraid of scents and complex alpha/omega dynamics, but at the same time, they had a little trouble understanding, even if they tried, what he went through every three months.
Avdol and Polnareff started dating in college and after graduating they moved in together, sharing a tiny apartment in Brooklyn. Noriaki dreamed of having a relationship like theirs one day, the love they both had for each other was visible, even with all the challenges that life in the big city provided.
"I'll be coaching you today, where's your workout plan?" Avdol started searching in the computer system for Noriaki's name.
"Hmm, I don't think I have one. The last few days I've just been walking on the treadmill and doing some sit-ups. I haven't had the energy for anything else."
"No problem, I'll make you one and show you all the devices you're going to use, okay? Come with me."
Noriaki followed his friend around the gym, learning how to put the correct weights on the machines and how to do the moves to prevent injuries. It was far more complicated than he imagined. Avdol was tough on him, like the demanding teacher he was. Noriaki thought he wouldn't be able to do even half of the plan, but with his friend's encouragement, he managed to finish it. He felt worn out but good at the same time.
The effort of getting to that gym was compensated by its showers. They were individual and large boxes, the water temperature was always perfect. Every time he finished cleaning himself, he liked to stay under the shower spray for a few minutes to feel the water pressure massaging his shoulders, removing all the tension and tiredness in his body.
Noriaki sat on the express train to get home, feeling that he would finally have a peaceful night of sleep, even if his bed was Avdol and Polnareff's lumpy sofa.
***
"Voilá, my special end-of-the-month recipe, tasty and cheap: vichyssoise! I hope you like it. It's my mother's recipe!" Jean winked and deposited the cassoulet pan on the table. He opened the lid revealing its steaming contents.
"Onion soup!" Noriaki almost cried with happiness, rushing to fill up his plate. All he wanted was a warm meal like that after that exhausting and cold day. It was a simple recipe with just a few ingredients, but it smelled and tasted amazing. Which was a surprise, usually his friend's cooking wasn't that great.
Polnareff was a peculiar man, not only due to his appearance but also due to his unique ability to talk nonstop. He seemed to be made of muscle, his arms alone were the same thickness as Noriaki's thighs. One of the perks of dating a personal trainer. His hair was light, almost white, his skin fair and his blue eyes were very expressive, which made up for his lack of eyebrows. When he wasn't wearing his usual flat-top hairstyle, which took at least half a can of hairspray to hold it up, his hair fell just below his chin.
The apartment where Avdol and Polnareff lived, and kindly offered the sofa bed to Noriaki, looked like a shoebox. The kitchen was small but open, with old, worn-out cabinets. It had only one window and to separate the living room from the bedroom, they used a bookcase. The bathroom was equally small, but like the whole house, it was very clean. Jean didn't like dirt places and did his best to keep them spotless.
Another apartment resident was Iggy, the Boston Terrier dog that Avdol rescued from the streets. He was grumpy and aggressive, but he seemed to like his owners. For the last few weeks, though, he'd preferred to sleep with Noriaki on the couch, curled up against his head. The young man found it very cute at first, but only until the dog started passing gas. How could such a small animal produce such a stench?
Noriaki was listening to his friend talk endlessly about his day and the latest gossip from the cafe he worked at, but the red-haired didn't participate much in the conversation. He was too busy devouring three portions of soup and a half loaf of bread. He didn't know why he was feeling so hungry, maybe it was because of the exercises, or maybe because it was the first time in weeks that he didn't feel his stomach lurch.
"If I knew you liked vichyssoise this much, I would have made it sooner." Polnareff got up from the table with a smile and took the dirty dishes to the kitchen sink. Noriaki followed him to help, but Jean placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Hey, let me do the dishes today, go rest, I can see your soul leaving your body, you are so tired."
"You worked as hard as I did, it's not fair."
"Tomorrow is Saturday, I'll have a full shift at work and so is Momo. You'll be in charge of everything, including deciding the menu." The French man exaggerated his accent in the last word just to see Noriaki laugh. Avdol would arrive even later that night since he worked until the gym closed.
Noriaki thanked him and opened the sofa bed. He sighed in relief when he finally laid down. The lumps in the hard upholstery went unnoticed, it felt like the most comfortable place in the world. The distant clink of dishes being washed lulled him to sleep.