Work Text:
“What’s that smell?” Jayce’s voice breaks the quiet of the workroom and Viktor flinches, though he keeps writing, hoping Jayce hasn’t noticed. “Was there an omega in here?” He hears footsteps coming closer.
The question should be insulting, but Jayce simply sounds confused, not irritated or annoyed, the way many alphas might be. There aren’t a lot of omegas in the academy and none in their specific department. An omega wandering around would cause many to get their hackles up.
“No,” Viktor answers, not looking away from the page, even as he mostly scribbles nonsense in the margins. “I had to go off my suppressants, it was interfering with my other medications.”
“Oh.” Jayce’s voice comes from just over his shoulder and he takes a peek from the corner of his eye. Jayce’s face is open and serene; not angry or betrayed. Viktor let out a breath he hadn’t been aware he was holding. “You’re an omega? You never said.”
Viktor sits up and turns more to face him. “Many aren’t kind to omegas. Omega men are even rarer and worse off. I already had a lot of obstacles in order to get here without my designation on top of everything else.”
Jayce’s brow furrows as he thinks that over. He gives a Viktor careful once-over. “But will you be okay? You won’t have a bad withdrawal from the suppressants?” Subtly, he shifts from one foot to the other, a gesture Viktor recognizes as nervousness. Jayce knows him well enough to know that he doesn't like talking about his meds unless it's completely unavoidable. Viktor smiles despite himself at the concern, though it’s misplaced.
“I’ll be fine,” he agrees. “Don’t worry about it.”
The tension in Jayce’s body seems to fall right off, and he smiles back. “Good! Let me know if you need anything.” There's a brief pause before he adds, “Or if anyone gives you a hard time. I’ll make sure they won’t do it again.”
Protective as always. Viktor rolls his eyes, bracing a hand on the edge of the desk to turn back to his notes. “Like I said, it’ll be fine.” Jayce steps forward just as he’s pulling his stool around, making him stop and tilt his head in silent question.
“Can I scent you?” Jayce asks, straightforward and blunt as he always is.
It’s not an unusual question. Ever since they’ve become partners, Jayce will frequently scent him, but that was when he was operating under the assumption that Viktor was a beta.
He hesitates, and Jayce notices immediately.
“You don’t have to! I just meant as partners, but of course, if you’re uncomfortable, just forget—”
“It’s okay,” Viktor interrupts, and Jayce quiets immediately. “I’m just worried your pack of fangirls will come after me. My scent will be stronger, you know.”
Jayce snorts, but he looks relieved. “I know! I can smell it, it smells good.” He waits for Viktor to hold out his wrists, and Viktor blinks at that.
As he offers out his wrists, he asks slowly, “What do I smell like?”
“A field of flowers after a rain,” Jayce answers, a little dreamily. He’s taken off his ever-present leather bracelet—something he rarely does, even for scenting—and presses their wrists together, pushing back and forth, encouraging their scents to spread. “It’s really nice. Reminds me of that meadow I told you about.”
Ah, yes. The one he was teleported to with his mother, the event that has shaped the rest of his life. No wonder he looks so entranced. Jayce lingers longer than normal, keeping their wrists pressed together—standing there looking starstruck—until Viktor clears his throat, and he jolts back.
“Sorry,” Jayce says, sounding embarrassed. Viktor shrugs.
“It’s alright.” Then he raises a brow. “Really? I hope you don’t do that with anyone else you scent, it’d be considered rude.”
Jayce has raised one of his wrists and given it a few sniffs. He laughs, waving a hand at Viktor as if brushing off the thought. “No, obviously not! I’m just amazed at how good we smell together. Like wood carving after a rain.”
“Surrounded by flowers?” Viktor adds and isn’t surprised to see Jayce’s pleased nod. Jayce, when he’s at his most relaxed, smells like freshly cut wood. It’s intriguing; most of the time he smells vaguely metallic. He gives it a few seconds, letting the moment linger. It’s nice. This whole thing is nice. He didn’t expect Jayce to judge him, but the ease of his acceptance is gratifying nonetheless. Still, he does need to get back to work. “Did you come in here for something?” he finally asks.
“Right!” Jayce fumbles for a second with a journal shoved beneath his armpit before coming close enough to lay it out on his desk. “I was thinking…”
Viktor lets his voice wash over him, eyes skimming the page and putting together Jayce’s points before he even gets to them. But he lets him talk. They work well together, always have, and maybe Jayce isn’t wrong about how well their scents mesh together. It’s calming, making it feel like they’ve made a little bubble of time where only the two of them exist.
As if the rest of the world can wait, just a little longer.
***
Viktor stands in the doorway of his small apartment, leaning his weight on the door jamb, glaring fiercely. “Absolutely not.”
Jayce stands there, arms filled with pillows, and possibly blankets, he can’t really tell. It’s practically a mountain of fabric, and yet even still, there’s enough of his face showing to shoot Viktor the biggest puppy dog eyes he's ever seen. “You’re going into heat, aren’t you? You took time off from the lab. I’ve been over to your place before, Viktor, you don’t have a lot of extra pillows. Won’t these be nice?” He lifts up his bundle like it’ll solve all of Viktor’s problems.
He can feel his eyebrow twitch. His body is overly warm, yet he feels achy and cold. Sighing loudly, he opens the door wider.
“I’m still in pre-heat. You shouldn’t be here,” he says unnecessarily as Jayce comes inside, heading directly towards his bedroom.
“Why, do you have a heat partner?” Jayce’s voice comes drifting from his room. Grabbing his cane from where he rested it when he opened the door, he takes longer than normal to limp towards the bedroom. His leg is on fire today, and if that’s because of his heat, it’s going to get a hell of a lot worse. He’s not looking forward to it.
When he arrives, Jayce has dropped his pile on the floor and is staring at his bed with a frown, hands on his hips like it’s a problem he needs to work out.
“No,” Viktor answers and Jayce whirls towards him.
“Then what’s the problem?”
What to start with… “We’re both unmated? You’re an alpha?” I don’t want you to lose control?
Though something within him craves the thought of being so enticing in his heat that Jayce wouldn’t be able to resist him, that he’d be able to have the alpha, to be bound to him… it’s a thrilling thought, but one that he ultimately rejects.
If Jayce ever chooses him, Viktor wants it a clear-headed choice, not because of something stupid like biology.
“Oh…” Jayce rubs the back of his head. “That won’t be a problem.”
A flash of irritation overwhelms him. Is he so undesirable that even being close to his heat means Jayce wouldn’t be tempted even for a second?
His scent must sour because Jayce is quick to say, “I’ll explain, I’ll explain! Want to make your nest while I do?” He gestures towards the pile. Viktor grunts with displeasure but comes forward. Jayce reaches down without a word, plucking up a blanket and offering it towards him with a smile.
It takes a while, but Viktor falls into a pleasant mind place as he works on the nest. He’s never made one before; from the moment he’d presented, he’s been on suppressants so there was never a need. But something settles within him as he fusses with the blankets and the pillows, even if logically he feels a little silly about it all.
While he works, Jayce talks. Apparently, Jayce isn’t as… sex driven as most other alphas.
“It was explained to me like a scale. We think of everyone as one thing: alpha, omega, or beta, right? But really it’s more of a scale. Take me, for example, I’m an alpha but I have some characteristics that are more like a beta. So, an omega in heat won’t force me into a rut. And while I can have sex, my instincts are more about taking care of an omega, making sure they’re safe, fed, and whatnot. I like cuddling the most.” Jayce chuckles at that. Viktor has to make sure he doesn’t drop the pillow he’s holding at the thought of being cuddled by Jayce. “So that’s why it’s okay for me to be here. I’ll leave! The moment you’re sick of me, I’ll go. I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable first.”
“If it’s a scale, then is anyone a ‘full’ alpha?” Viktor asks, just so he doesn’t do something stupid, like ask Jayce to stay for the entirety of his heat.
“Sure! That’s probably where those stories of ‘prime alphas’ come from. Though, if you ask me, that’s just an excuse for some alphas to pretend that they can’t control themselves, which is just sick.”
“Mmhm. I think it’s done.”
They both stand there, eyeing the bed critically. Unlike the few he’s seen, Viktor didn’t go for the round shape, instead following the line of the mattress. His body would hurt if he tried to curl into a round nest. Instead, there’s a few pillows set to prop up his leg, and plenty against the backboard if he wants to sit up. The edge against the wall is overflowing with pillows and blankets stuffed between the cracks.
It looks a mess, but comfortable.
“I love it!” Jayce gushes at last. “You did a great job!”
The praise makes his stomach squirm with delight, but... “It’s missing something.”
Jayce looks at him with a small frown. “Like what?”
“A canopy. Though I would have to be careful getting in and out, so I don’t trip… Maybe it’s not worth it.” Though he thinks feeling shut in would be nice, potentially slipping could be dangerous.
“I could help you with that!” Jayce says brightly. “I can get something that you can easily push to the sides that won’t drag over the mattress or the floor. Next time though. Want help getting in?” Holding out his hands, Jayce practically oozes the perfect gentleman, eager and helpful. Viktor can almost picture a tail wagging.
“Sure,” Viktor agrees, putting the cane beside the bed and grabbing onto one of Jayce’s hands. Jayce’s other arm winds around his waist and helps guide him down onto the bed, rather than the inelegant flop he would have done alone. This is nicer, his work won’t get ruined like this.
Once he’s settled against the headboard, Jayce continues to fuss, fluffing the pillows around Viktor’s head, and plucking at blankets, tugging them over his legs and tucking in the edges. It’s more mother hen-ing than he’d expect from an alpha, but he can’t help but be pleased by the attention.
Jayce grabs him some water, then a few snacks, then loiters near the edge of the bed, brushing out invisible wrinkles in the fabric.
At this point, Viktor is sleepy. There’s an ache in his bones that far outweighs the ache in his core. The doctor had warned him that he might not even feel up for sex, his body too confused by all the hormones to really do anything but be miserable until it gets used to his heats.
He pats the space next to him, towards the wall. “If you want to stay, then get in. Otherwise, leave. I want to sleep.”
Jayce perks up before scrambling to kick off his shoes and strip out of his necktie and vest, as if if he takes too long, Viktor will rescind the offer. He clambers onto the bed, but instead of squeezing in next to Viktor, he lays his head on his good thigh, nuzzling his cheek into it.
“Uh,” Viktor starts, confused. Jayce doesn’t explain, just motions with his hand until Viktor lays a hand on his hair. He sighs, sounding satisfied.
“I just like this,” Jayce says. “Let me lay here a bit and then I’ll hold you.”
“Alright.” It’s a little strange, but not uncomfortable. He runs his fingers through Jayce’s short hair, and can’t help but smile as Jayce buries deeper, obviously drinking in the touch.
As promised, it doesn’t take Jayce long to sit back up and jam himself in the space provided (the bed is small). At first, Viktor misses his weight against his leg, but once Jayce pulls him against his large chest, he feels even better, surrounded by warmth and Jayce’s scent.
I could get used to this, Viktor thinks, as his eyes get heavy. He shouldn’t, he knows. That road only leads to more pain. They’re partners as Jayce so often likes to say, and there’s no guarantee that he’d want anything more than this. But for now, this is perfect. This is exactly what he needs.
So, Viktor drifts off, still a little achy, but content.
And safe.