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Closing his book, Tonfah groaned and stretched his arms above his head, twisting his head to soothe the ache in his neck. He hadn’t meant to stay at his desk for so long hunched over his book, but he had easily gotten lost in the pages and inadvertently read longer than he had intended to. It was only when he caught the time displayed on the digital clock out of the corner of his eye that he finally stopped, realising how late it was.
Leaving the desk lamp on, he turned in his chair and glanced over to his bed, smiling at the sight he saw.
Curled up on his side and snuggled under the covers, Typhoon slept soundly. Tonfah observed the small mound in the middle of the bed move rhythmically, the long rise and fall of the omega’s chest slow while he slept deeply, not even making a peep. Surprisingly—or rather unsurprisingly, given how exhausted the omega had appeared—it hadn’t taken him long to fall asleep, not even a few minutes after his head had hit the pillow.
Standing from his desk, Tonfah crept soundlessly around the bed until Phoon’s face barely came into view, partially hidden by his hands curled up in front of him. Still, he caught his closed eyelids, watching his dark lashes fluttering against his cheeks, twitching while he dreamt. However, even in his sleep, Typhoon didn’t seem at peace. A worryingly deep frown carved the space between the younger’s eyebrows, like the omega couldn’t escape his troubles even when he was unconscious, and it disturbed something inside of Tonfah.
The sudden urge to lean over the boy and gently smooth the creases across his face with his fingers arose within him, compelling him to act. Tonfah paused at the edge of the bed with his own frown, realising his body had moved into action like it was instinct.
Huh, where had that come from?
In the depths of his biology, his inner alpha bristled, nettled by something, but Tonfah was unsure of what. Recently, that was a common occurrence and it baffled the medical student. He always considered himself a level-headed person, never letting his emotions or his secondary gender get the better of him, but lately, he had been feeling… off-balance. It felt like he was on edge all the time, hyper-aware of his surroundings and restless in his solitude, which was strange because he didn’t mind his own company. While he enjoyed the company of his close friends, he equally enjoyed time by himself, unlike Arthit, who always had the insatiable need to be orbited by people at all times.
Yet, it seemed that his inner alpha constantly paced inside of him, huffing and grumbling under the surface. It certainly didn’t help that Tonfah knew it was waiting for something, but he couldn’t place his finger on it. Usually, any upset about a person’s secondary gender stemmed from changes in their life. These unsuspecting events threw their pheromones out of sync, but he couldn’t think of anything different in his life at the moment.
Well, except for Typhoon.
The realisation halted his thoughts, and curiously, the alpha tilted his head while he stared at the sleeping omega in his bed.
The more he considered the idea, the more he realised he could pinpoint the moment when his inner alpha began acting out—the day he had reunited with Typhoon at the market.
Remembering the intense panic he experienced when Phoon had gotten lost in the crowd and the way his search for the omega had bordered on desperate, it unsettled him. He had never experienced such strong emotions like that before—even the relief he felt when he found Phoon had been immense. Ever since then, his inner alpha was in a constant state of vigilance, Typhoon’s welfare always prickling in the back of his mind, and it only settled when the omega was in his sights.
Could Typhoon really be the cause of his behaviour change?
Still peering at the omega, watching him sleep in the near-darkness that Tonfah had promised he would protect him from, he sat down on the edge of the bed.
It made sense, given how close the two of them used to be when they were younger; they were practically attached at the hip throughout their shared childhood until Tonfah’s family had moved. Typhoon had been his shadow, always by his side as often as he could. In the years after he had moved away, the alpha often thought of the omega, wondering what he would be doing and whether he was lost in the woods again. He had missed Typhoon terribly, but when enough time had passed, Tonfah had convinced himself that he would probably never see the younger again.
It had hurt, but he eventually came to terms with it.
That was why it was such a tremendous shock that Tonfah bumped into him at the market out of the blue, looking so grown up, but still the shy and sweet boy he had said goodbye to all those years ago.
To say Tonfah was happy to have Typhoon back in life was an understatement; he was ecstatic! It was such a consolation to have his old neighbour back in his life. Even after so much time had passed, they had fallen into their old patterns again. Typhoon was someone he could easily talk to for hours, whether it was reminiscing on old memories, laughing and joking together, or studying for school. He was someone Tonfah could take under his wing once more and guide onto the most successful path. It helped that their personalities were so similar; they were both quiet and reserved, homebodies who preferred hushed cafes over loud and overstimulating clubs.
They were essentially a perfect duo who seemed to mesh well with each other, which was probably why Tonfah had been so worried about Typhoon in the last couple of days.
It hardly took much for the alpha to notice the way Typhoon began pulling away and closed in on himself. The omega had become progressively downtrodden, getting to the point where he refused to eat at all and even became snappy and defensive at Tonfah’s attempts to get him to open up. After he had missed the most recent tutoring session, Tonfah’s concern had snowballed into alarming worry that he had somehow offended his junior or done something to upset him and his inner alpha was confused as to why the omega was pushing them away.
That was the last thing Tonfah wanted.
So, upon reflection, he surmised that was the reason why he had invited Phoon to stay over tonight on a whim.
When the omega had unexpectedly reached out and suggested they meet for dinner, it was an olive branch that Tonfah snatched at excitedly, hoping that it meant a reconciliation to this strange breakdown in their friendship.
However, when he saw Typhoon sitting at the table at his chosen cafe, he knew something was still amiss. The tension practically radiated off him, denting his pheromones and muting his already weak scent, but the younger wouldn’t share what troubled him. It was quite obvious that whatever ailed him was having an effect on his health, given how unwell he looked, and Tonfah stewed in the worry that had plagued him for the last few days.
Before he could stop himself, the offer for Typhoon to spend the night at his condo had fallen from his lips. He hadn’t thought twice about it, really. If something was troubling Phoon to the point where it was physically making him ill, then Tonfah wanted to help as much as he could. It made sense that he would look after his nong, just like he did when they were kids.
Just like he had promised Thorfun only recently.
Thankfully, Phoon had accepted his offer and for the first time in the last few days, Fah’s inner alpha decompressed. All the pressure and concern that built up inside of him had dissolved, like a laden weight had been lifted from his shoulders and he could breathe a little easier.
Watching the boy sleep in his den, it suddenly hit the alpha just how protective he felt over him. Even though four years had passed between them, the compulsion to watch over the omega was stronger than ever. Typhoon appeared even more fragile than when he was a child and it seemed to be evoking Tonfah’s instincts to shelter the younger.
Maybe that’s the reason I’ve been feeling so strange lately, he thought off-handedly, but it stuck in his mind.
Of course, it explains it so well.
Typhoon was as good as family to him, like his pseudo-little brother. With his sudden return to his life after years of absence, it made sense why his inner alpha was so out of sorts—he recognised the omega as pack, and with pack, you always wanted to defend and nurture as an alpha, keeping them safe and happy.
In the hushed darkness of the bedroom, Tonfah chuckled to himself, careful not to disturb the sleeping omega.
Why hadn’t he seen it before? It made so much sense.
It also made Tonfah feel better about himself, his self-diagnosis bringing him a sense of relief. A classic example of another one of his problems; he was never satisfied until he could come to a firm conclusion. On the bright side, he believed it would make him a better doctor, despite the comments from his professors.
Letting his thoughts settle, he glanced over to the bedroom door. Tonfah knew he should retreat to the sofa for the night—it was already way past his usual bedtime—but he didn’t move from the bed. Instead, he returned his gaze to the sleeping figure, who still wore the deep frown across his face.
After a second contemplation, he delicately lifted the covers and slipped into bed next to the younger, deciding to just sleep in his own bed with the other. Typhoon wouldn’t mind; he was his phi and they had shared a bed plenty of times growing up. After all, Tonfah had promised he would look after him while he was ill, so it made sense to stay next to him while they slept.
Even though his scent wasn’t that strong, the mild aroma of vanilla soothed Tonfah as he settled on his back, so reminiscent of his childhood. It reminded him of when the pair of them would have their sleepovers, staying up into the early hours of the morning giggling quietly in the duvet fort they would build, sharing ghost stories and playing pirates.
That’s all he really wished for again—a close friendship with the omega, just like when they were kids.
Listening to Phoon’s soft breathing, Tonfah dared to reach his hand out, letting his fingers brush away the strands of hair that had fallen across the younger’s face. As gently as he could, he grazed his fingertips across his forehead, trying to smooth out the frown etched in his skin.
A low sigh spooked him and he ripped his hand away when Typhoon murmured incoherently, worried he had disturbed him from his slumber. However, to Tonfah’s relief, he remained fast asleep, only subconsciously moving his hands away from his face, revealing that the frown had vanished from his face to be replaced by a small, contented smile.
Feeling himself mirror the expression, Tonfah relaxed into his pillow with a wistful sigh, continuing to watch the omega until his own eyes eventually closed with exhaustion. The alpha fell asleep with the budding hope that things were on the right track for the pair of them and that they could mend their relationship to how it was previously.