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Starcourt Mall was gone, disappeared in an explosion of fireworks and nightmares that still haunted Billy’s every waking moment. Thankfully he wasn’t awake all that often, having a gaping chest wound along with losing at least a 3rd of your blood will do that to a person. But during the brief moments when he wasn't asleep and the even briefer moments when he wasn't pumped so full of drugs that he could actually form a semi-coherent thought, Billy couldn't help but think that Starcourt was just a metaphor for his own life.
Finally managing to break free of the monster that had control of him only to be ripped apart and left for dead. Except he wasn't dead, just really fucking close to it.
And more than one monster had been vanquished that night.
Apparently, watching him sacrifice himself for her had been enough of a push for Max to go to the authorities with everything that Neil had done to him, and with the help of her weird, mind-reading friend it hadn't taken long for Neil to be put down. It turned out that forcing your child to hide their status through drugs wasn't just morally wrong, it was also illegal.
Billy wasn't sure why that had never occurred to him before really. Then again, he’d never really questioned the things his father did to him, it was just what he got for being an Omega. He was a disappointment to his very core so of course Neil would try to fix that, even if he used violence to get there.
It had never been an option before, to present as who he truly was, so now that everyone knew, Billy didn’t really know how to handle himself. Again, he wasn’t currently in any state to handle anything, much less reckoning with what being an unclaimed, male Omega meant. He had no idea how he was supposed to face everyone, all of the people he’d brow beaten in an attempt to claim the spot as top Alpha. It wasn’t like he expected forgiveness, he just hoped that no one outright hated him anymore.
It was two weeks after the Starcourt fire when he found out that ‘coming out’ was something else that had been taken out of his hands.
The scent of a distressed, hurt Alpha pulled him from yet another drug-induced slumber and he forced his eyes open. He groaned as the hospital fluorescents stabbed at the back of his eyes. Glancing over to the other bed that occupied his room, Billy felt a jolt of recognition, and what he hesitated to call fear.
“Steve.” He breathed, the simple sound causing lances of pain to shoot through his chest.
Steve’s head lolled to the side, peaking at Billy through two swollen, black eyes. Billy could remember the state of Steve’s face the last time he’d seen him, and whilst it had been bad it hadn't been this bad. “Billy.” Steve replied, the sound whistling through a new gap in his front teeth.
“What...what happened to you?” Billy could feel the way his breath stuttered out of his damaged lungs. He couldn’t believe that after everything, all his years of smoking, of ignoring the ads and scare tactics, that this was how he fucked up his lungs. By having a monster attempting to rip them from his body.
Steve huffed a laugh, followed by a wince as the action pulled at whatever injuries Billy couldn’t see. “Like you care.” He hissed, but it was without his usual venom.
Billy looked away, returning his focus on attempting to find a more comfortable position in his bed. He didn’t have the energy to rehash their old rivalries, and to be honest, he had sort of hoped that sacrificing himself for Steve and his little nerd squad would have been enough for the other boy to stop hating him.
Seriously, you hit a guy with a plate once.
Billy figured that he should probably hold more animosity towards Steve as well, after all the only reason he’d smashed that plate was because Steve had backed him into a corner. Steve had hit him first. Steve had hidden his sister from him. Sure, Billy wasn’t exactly innocent in all this, he shouldn't have gone for Lucas like that, but the last time he’d seen the kid it had been after he’d made Max cry.
He’d been trying to be a good big brother. Just something else that he was a natural failure at apparently.
“So, you’re an Omega.”
Billy blinked, having dozed off slightly as his last dose of pain killers began to kick in. “Uh...” He trailed off, not sure what to say.
“No point denying it, I can fucking smell you.” Steve said, finally looking at him. The Alpha’s eyes trailed up and down his body, like he was assessing him for something that Billy couldn’t guess at. “Not sure why I never noticed it before really.”
Billy looked away again, feeling his cheeks flushing from the scrutiny. “I was careful.” He replied, his fingers curling uncomfortably in the bed sheets. “Couldn’t have anyone knowing.”
“Why?”
Billy didn’t answer for a while, trying to decide whether he even wanted to explain himself. He’d thought that everyone knew now, Max had told him that Neil had been arrested, weren’t people wondering why?
He swallowed thickly. “My dad...” He trailed off again. “He...he didn’t like it.”
He heard a snort from the other bed and his head whipped around. “So what? You were just gonna hide forever? What did he expect you to do? Not like you could change it.”
“You...” Steve looked over at him, his smile bemused and still stupidly attractive despite the dark bruising that decorated his face. “He broke my ribs because he found weed in my room, I'm pretty sure he would have fucking killed me if I told someone what I was.”
That made Steve sit up, wincing as the movement pulled at whatever injuries he had. “I’m sorry.” He whispered, chewing on his split bottom lip. “I thought...when Max said he used to hit you, I thought it was just what most dads did.”
“Does your dad hit you?” Billy shot back, he could feel exhaustion creeping back in again, the enticing lure of sleep causing his words to come out slurred.
Steve shrugged. “He’s never really been around enough to hit me, but yeah, I remember getting spanked as a kid.”
Billy let his head flop back against the pillow. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.” He whispered, closing his eyes and letting sleep take him.
--
He had hoped that by the time he woke again that Steve would be gone. Sure, the Alpha had looked bad, but Billy figured that they’d put him in his room by accident. It must have been against hospital regulations to house an unclaimed Omega in the same room as an Alpha. However, when the nurse arrived with his next dose of meds and some plain porridge, he looked over to see Steve still in bed.
The Alpha appeared to be asleep, his back to Billy as his chest rose and fell slowly.
“He said you were friends.” The nurse said quietly, smiling over at the sleeping boy. “We don’t usually let Alphas and Omegas stay in the same ward, but we figured after all that you’ve been through, it might help you both heal quicker to be kept together.”
Billy didn’t answer, simply stared at her in shock as she left. Once the door closed, returning the room to its previous silence, Billy turned his attention back to Steve. “Friends?” He asked, not expecting an answer of any kind.
“Wishful thinking, I guess.” Steve replied, still with his back to Billy.
“But...but you hate me.” Billy said without thinking, flinching back against the covers when Steve moved suddenly.
The Alpha sat up, staring at Billy like he’d just said something ridiculous. “What?”
“You...you hate me.” Billy repeated. “You never talk to me, you always ignored me...and after that night at...”
“Billy stop.” Steve held up his hand, shaking his head and wincing at the movement. “Max explained to me why you acted like that, and I guess I understand where you were coming from...Although I do want to say that I never touched those kids. I promise.”
Billy nodded silently, swallowing as tears pricked at the back of his eyes. He didn’t think that Max knew what he’d gone through. Sure, she knew about Neil, but he’d been fairly certain that she wasn’t aware of Karen...or the other women. The ones that never asked his permission, the ones that had started noticing him when he’d been no older than Max was now.
“What...what did she tell you?” He asked.
Steve’s hands dropped to his lap. “She told me about your dad, but like I said, I didn’t realise how bad it was. She told me why you were there that night, why you were so scared.” Steve shook his head. “I didn’t realise that was what I could smell until she said so. I guess if I'd have known you were an Omega...”
“What has that got to do with anything?” Billy snapped. He’d seen the way Omega’s were treated, like they were delicate, useless things that needed protecting. He wasn’t about to let that happen now just because people knew what he was. “I wasn’t scared because I’m an Omega.”
“That wasn’t what I was saying.” Steve said, laying back down, a slight sheen of sweat on his brow like he found sitting strenuous. “I meant that I just thought you smelt that way. You’re an Omega so you smell sweet, but that night it was like...burnt or something. So I figured that it was your normal scent, or your angry scent.” A small smile twitched at Steve’s lips as he rolled his head to look at Billy again.
Billy knew his cheeks must be pink, he’d been on suppressants for so long that he’d forgotten what his own scent was. He’d never had someone else talk about it before, it felt surprisingly innocent.
“Your normal scent is so sweet and warm, it’s like being in a bakery when they just bring the fresh cookies out.”
Billy looked away. “Guess scents don’t always fit the people they come from.” He muttered. “I always thought yours suited you though.”
“You noticed my scent?” Steve asked, his voice filled with a warm amusement that was doing nothing for the heat that Billy could feel on his own cheeks. “I thought that suppressants also stopped you from being able to notice things like that.”
Billy didn’t want to tell Steve that it depended on how compatible people were, that even the strongest of suppressants couldn't hide the scent of someone's true mate.
“What happened to you?” He asked, trying to change the topic.
“I found out that you were an Omega.” Steve replied, like that explained everything.
“What are you talking about?” This conversation felt like it was going round in circles and Billy didn’t have the energy to deal with this.
“Tommy and Jason were talking shit about you, about the fact that you were an Omega. They...they were saying some really awful shit...I didn’t realise how Omegaist they are.”
“You...” Billy’s eyes widened as he took in the Alpha’s injuries again. “Were you defending me? That’s why you look like that?”
“Yeah.” Steve said, like it was the simplest thing in the world. “And for the record, I never hated you.”
“Clearly.” Billy found himself saying. “Not sure I'd be willing to have the shit beaten out of me if I hated the person I was defending.”
That caused Steve to laugh, which dissolved into a coughing fit that looked so painful that Billy could feel his own ribs aching. “God, yeah. Don’t think I ever realised how bad I am at fighting until a few days ago. I only got like two punches in.”
“I could have told you that.” Billy replied with a huff.
“I know, I know.” Steve was smiling at him again, something that Billy had craved for so long that he didn’t know what to do now. “I need to plant my feet more.” Steve laughed again, softer this time as Billy looked down at his lap. “You used to be so hard to read Billy.”
“What do you mean?”
“I mean I never used to know what you wanted. I’m bad at reading expressions, always have been, but normally people's scents give them away. That was why I used to ignore you, you weirded me out a bit, and I couldn’t figure out how to talk to you.” Steve’s eyes crinkled at the corners; his expression so filled with fondness that Billy found himself short of breath. “I did want to talk to you though.”
“M-me too.” Billy stuttered. His whole body was tingling now, exhaustion and nerves mixing in his stomach to the extent where he worried that his porridge might not stay down. “You don’t act like a normal Alpha though.”
“How do Alphas act?”
Billy shrugged, picking at his covers. “You know, normally all I've got to do is beat one at basketball or slap ‘em on the back or something and we’re friends.”
“Is that why you were grinding on me in that first game?”
Billy’s head shot up. “I wasn’t...I wasn’t grinding on you.”
“You were.” Steve grinned. “Basketball isn’t usually a contact sport Billy. Were you trying to make friends?”
“Shut up.” Billy crossed his arms with a huff, slumping back against the pillow. He tried to ignore how warm Steve’s responding laugh made him.
--
Discovering that they were both apparently as awkward as each other, served to break the last of the ice between them. Their conversations were still slightly stilted and there was an air of something left unsaid between them, but Billy could find himself relaxing more and more around the Alpha.
They were both bedridden, Billy more so than Steve, and talking for long stretches of time was exhausting so they resorted to messaging each other most of the time. Often it was lighthearted, they spent a lot of time sending each other memes and TikTok's, but when the sun went down their chat tended to become deeper.
Billy found himself admitting to things he’d been through that he’d never told anyone before. He told Steve about his mom, confessing in the quiet of their room that he sometimes forgot what she looked like.
In return Steve told him about his own childhood, a time filled with loneliness and isolation. How he used his King Steve persona as a shield. How he sometimes believed what Nancy had told him when they broke up. That he was bullshit.
It was during one of these late-night heart-to-hearts that Billy confessed one of his biggest secrets.
“I’m gay.” He whispered, staring up at the ceiling. He’d let his phone drop against his chest a few moments ago, this felt like something he needed to say aloud. He looked over to the other bed when he got no response, wondering if Steve was asleep, or if he’d simply gone one confession too far.
Steve was looking at him, his large brown eyes glittering in the darkness. “I think I am too, at least a little bit.”
“What do you mean, a little bit?”
Steve shrugged, a pained breath leaving him after the movement. His face had mostly healed by now, but Billy knew that Steve had at least two broken ribs and sharp movements still hurt. “I mean that I know I like girls...but I like boys too.”
Billy hummed in response, refusing to dwell on the confession. Steve liking boys didn’t change anything, it didn’t mean that he liked Billy.
--
Billy was startled from his doze again as his phone binged. “Steve.” He groaned, opening his messages to find that Steve had sent him a video compilation of cats trying and failing to jump from things. “You woke me up for that?”
Steve giggled from the other bed, clearly still high on pain meds. “They can’t jump.” He gasped, playing the video on his own phone. “They’re like, whoop.” He made a little jumping motion with his hand before dissolving into another fit of giggles.
“You’re such a dork.” Billy replied with a laugh of his own.
“You’re a dork.” Steve shot back childishly, causing Billy to roll his eyes.
“At least you’re cute when you're high.” Billy said without thinking, his eyes widening seconds later when he realised what he’d actually said. He chanced another look at Steve, only to find the Alpha pouting at him.
“I’m not cute when I'm not high?” Steve asked. “That’s so mean.”
Billy rolled his eyes in an attempt to distract from his blush, not that Steve would notice considering the hazy look in his eyes. “I take it back, you’re just annoying when you’re high.”
“Noooo.” Steve whined. “I’m cute all the time. Just like you’re pretty all the time.”
Billy didn’t know what to say to that, and thankfully he didn’t need to think of anything because the nurse chose that moment to come in and check on them. Steve fell asleep pretty soon after that, leaving Billy replaying his words over and over in his mind until he joined him.
--
Unsurprisingly Steve was discharged before Billy was. He’d sustained some serious injuries, but it was nothing compared to the mess that Billy had been left in. What was surprising though was that Steve kept coming back, sometimes with Max in tow but more often than not he was alone.
“Hey.” Steve said from the doorway, a large smile on his face as he watched Billy hobbling about his room. “You’re out of bed.”
Billy nodded, unable to speak through the pain lancing down his spine. He flopped onto the chair in the corner, trying to catch his breath. “S-said th...that if I could...” He broke off, taking a few more deep breaths until he stopped trembling. “If I could walk to the bathroom and back that...that I'd be able to go home.”
Steve left his bag by the door, making his way over to Billy’s chair and crouching in front of him. “Are you going to live with Max and her mom?”
“Yeah.” Billy replied, his breath ghosting out of him. Steve had been this close to him on a number of occasions since he’d been off his suppressants, but he was becoming increasingly overwhelmed by the Alpha’s scent whenever they were in the same room as one another. He’d known since the first day they’d met that Steve was his true mate, had already gone through the heartbreak that went with realising that the one Alpha that was genetically predisposed to love him in fact didn’t.
The fact that Steve had apparently taken their brief stint as hospital roommates as an indication that they were friends now, had very quickly destroyed all of the hard work that Billy had done.
Steve had a curious smile on his face, one that Billy had been seeing increasingly frequently. “Do you want to live with them?”
Billy frowned in confusion. “Where else would I live?” He asked. “I’ll move out again when I'm better but I... I still need help.”
“Oh, that wasn’t what I meant.” Steve placed a warm hand on Billy’s knee. “I know you still need help, but I was just...I was wondering if maybe...you’d want to move in with me?”
“What?”
“I have a big house, and we’re friends now, right?” Steve said with a shrug, like it was as simple as that. “I hate living alone, and I’m pretty sure I can look after you. It’ll just be like we’re college roommates.”
The small flame of hope that had been simmering in Billy’s chest was quickly extinguished by that last sentence.
“I really enjoyed the 2 months we lived together here. You now, besides the pain and shit.” Steve continued. “It’ll be fun, I promise.”
--
It took another three weeks before Billy was strong enough to be discharged, during which time he waited for Steve to take back his offer. To realise how bad of an idea them living together was. But he didn’t, instead Steve was waiting for Billy by his car when he hobbled out of the hospital.
“Here, let me help with that.” Steve said, taking Billy’s bag and tossing it into the back seat. He helped Billy into the car, taking his walking stick from him once he was settled.
It wasn’t a long drive from the hospital to Loch Nora but the silence made it feel that way. Billy couldn’t stop fidgeting, picking at his clothes, twisting his necklace around his fingers. The intoxicating scent of rain on warm earth that Steve constantly gave off was clogging his nostrils, causing his skin to tingle.
“So...”
“This was a mistake.” Billy blurted, just as Steve put the car in park.
Steve frowned, turning to face him. “What do you mean?”
“We...we can’t live together.” Billy replied, his voice strained and desperate.
“What? Why not?” Billy couldn’t be sure, but Steve looked almost hurt by his statement.
“Because...” Billy took a deep breath, he just needed to get this over with. Rip the Band-Aid off. That way it was out in the open and things could go back to the way they had always been. He could continue to pine after Steve from a safe distance, and Steve could go back to ignoring his very existence. “Because you’re my true mate. It would...it would be too hard.”
Steve stared at him for a long while before a large, relieved smile spread over his face. “I wasn’t imagining it.” He breathed, tears gathering in the corners of his eyes.
Billy blinked, non-plussed by that statement. “What do you mean?”
Steve wiped quickly at his eyes, his smile not faltering for a second. “That first day in the hospital. I could smell it, but I didn’t know what it was at first.”
“You knew?” Billy’s voice was coming out a lot squeakier than he intended, his heart jackhammering against his chest when Steve nodded.
“Oh sweetheart, why else do you think I was so adamant about us living together? I didn’t want to lose you.”
“But...you said we would just be roommates.” Billy said, leaning into the hand that Steve placed on his cheek with a sigh of relief.
“I didn’t want to scare you. I’m still happy to take things slow if you want, but I want you to be my mate.” Steve tilted forward until their foreheads met. “I mean it.”
Now it was Billy’s turn to cry, tears tracking down his face as he took in what Steve was offering him. “I want that too.” He whispered, closing his eyes as Steve closed the distance between them and kissed him.
“Then let’s go home, baby.”