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Charles never expected Max to show up on his doorstep in the middle of their winter break. He'd assumed Max was off somewhere, holidaying in a hot and sunny country, having fun with the friends he did not see often. Apparently Max had been in Monaco all winter long and clearly Charles had missed that.
Still, even if Charles had known, spending time together during breaks wasn't something they did. They had fun together during race weekends and they texted sometimes. That was as far as their friendship went (much to Charles’ regret, who wanted more than friendship with the beautiful and feisty omega).
But it didn't matter whether Charles expected Max or not because Max was here now (with his two cats and a backpack for some reason) and he was looking lost.
“Come inside, Max,” Charles said quickly, “What's the matter?”
Max’s scent was sour. “It's that obvious then. God. I must look really bad.”
Charles couldn't deny it, that Max looked bad with the bags underneath his eyes and the gaunt look on his face, and he didn't think Max would appreciate it if he lied.
“Let's settle down inside,” Charles said gently.
Max nodded and followed Charles into his apartment. Charles told Max to sit down on the couch and gave him a blanket. Max wrapped the blanket around his shoulders and his cats laid down in his lap.
“Not that I don't appreciate seeing you,” Charles said gently, “But you don't usually come over. Especially not without notice. What happened?”
Max looked forlorn and utterly terrified. “Two Alphas broke into my apartment last night. I, uh, I managed to knock them out so they couldn't… they couldn't… Well, they couldn't do what Alphas who go after Omegas who live alone do. And I called the cops. But my apartment doesn't feel safe anymore and the cops said I should go somewhere safe anyway until they figure out how and why they broke in. In case someone leaked my address or something,” he explained. “So now I'm here. I hope you don't mind. Uh. My heat is coming up in a week so I didn't want to be around someone strange. And I trust you. But I will of course leave if it makes you uncomfortable.”
Charles nearly growled when he heard people attempting to get to Max. It took all his effort to not let his scent sour completely. He didn't want to freak Max out more. Not after the horrible night he had.
“Of course you can stay here,” Charles told him, “I am honored that you feel safe with me.”
“Always I have known you are safe,” Max said, like that wasn't a huge deal. “You never treated me lesser for being an Omega even when we were always fighting each other. And of course Omegas talk and I know you are very good to them. It is not an act when you are nice to me.”
Charles didn't really know what to say to that. He liked to think it was normal to treat an Omega like an equal, like a person, but of course there were many Alphas who did not think that way and believed Omegas were lesser than them, that they were theirs to take and control. It disgusted Charles. Luckily his parents had raised him and his brothers better than that.
“Do you need anything from me to make you feel safer right now, Max?” Charles asked.
Max shook his head. “Being here is good, I think. The blanket is very nice.”
Charles smiled a little. “Arthur always buys blankets and nesting materials for my apartment. He says any decent Alpha always is ready to make an Omega feel at home.”
“He's not wrong, I guess,” Max said. “The blanket is making me feel at home. Comfortable, at least. The last day has not been so comfortable so this is really lovely.”
“I'll make sure to let Arthur know that he was right. He'll be pleased about that,” Charles said. “Do you want food or anything to drink?”
"Food, please. If it's not too much work,” Max said softly.
“Leftover pasta is okay for you?” Charles checked.
Max nodded.
“Then that's coming right up,” Charles said.
He quickly went into his kitchen and heated up some pasta from the night before. He hoped Max liked bolognese sauce. He divided the pasta over two plates and grabbed some cutlery from a drawer, then headed back to the living room.
Max was still curled up inside the blanket and his cats were asleep in his lap. His scent had gotten a bit softer, Charles could smell his sweet vanilla and strawberry tones again. That was good. That meant Max truly felt safe and okay here.
“I have the food,” Charles said. He handed Max a plate and a set of cutlery.
Max looked down at his cats. He was obviously reluctant about disturbing them. He leaned back and placed his plate on his chest, then finally took his first bite. Charles sat down next to him and watched with fascination, barely remembering to eat his own pasta.
“It's a sin to move a sleeping cat,” Max said when he caught Charles staring.
“Of course it is,” Charles agreed easily.
Max smiled at him. It was not yet the full smile Charles usually received from him these days but Charles wasn't expecting that from Max today. He didn't expect anything at all. The only thing that mattered was Max’s safety, Max’s comfort.
They ate the rest of their dinner in silence. It was rare for them these days to not fill any moment of quiet with nitpicking about races and sharing fond memories. But that was after races of course. Not after Max just went through something incredibly scary. The silence wasn't uncomfortable anyway, Charles realized. There was something nice about just existing next to another person. Especially when that person was Max.
Once Max was finished with his food, Charles took his plate from him and put it down on the coffee table. The cats stirred a little, then decided to continue with their naps.
“Can you just sit with me for a while?” Max asked. “It is nice being close to you. You smell safe and good like new tires and cinnamon. It is very nice. Nothing like the Alphas that came to my apartment. They smelled horrible.”
“Of course I can sit with you,” Charles said and tried to not sound or smell too pleased about the knowledge that Max thought he smelled good.
“Can you… Can you also hold my hand?” Max asked nervously. “You, of course, don't have to. Only if you want.”
“I'd like to hold your hand,” Charles admitted, “Even on normal days.”
Max blushed and held his hand out for Charles to take. Charles curled his fingers around Max’s. Then they just sat there for a while. Max’s scent softened more. It was lovely. Charles was starting to feel like Max might be interested in him, too. Still, he would not make any moves tonight. It was too soon. Today was about Max’s comfort. Anything else could wait until later.
Max fell asleep with his head on Charles’ shoulders. He was kind of like a cat, Charles thought. He would not disturb his sleep. That would be a sin.