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it’s two in the morning when till is nudged awake by his mate. “hm? wha’ time issit?”
“tilly...”
instantly, till sits up. “what’s wrong?” he asks, grabbing his glasses from his bedside table. “are you hurt? is it the baby? what is it?”
ivan, already sitting up in bed, looks at him with tears in his eyes. “it’s... it’s stupid.”
“oh, baby, no.” till turns really quickly to turn on his lamp before reaching for his mate, gently cradling ivan’s cheeks in his palms. he lowers his voice, lets out soothing pheromones to calm ivan. “whatever it is, it’s not stupid. now, tell alpha. how can alpha help the best omega in the world?”
ivan sniffs, averting his eyes to avoid till’s soft gaze. “you’re only calling me the best omega in the world because i’m carrying your spawn.”
till gasps dramatically. “are you really? i didn’t know that. i already thought you were the best omega in the world even without that.”
“stoooop,” ivan whines even as he nuzzles into till’s palm. “dumb alpha.”
“dumbest alpha,” till says gently, “dumb for you. now, will you tell this dumb-as-rocks alpha how he can help you?”
“it’s so stupid.” ivan looks down, places his hands carefully over his swollen belly. “i just... i’m hungry.”
till nods. “i can fix that. what are you craving? dakgalbi? kimchi rice? i can do it all, babe.”
ivan gives till a look of melancholy. “i want mango soft-serve ice cream.”
till blinks. “mango... soft-serve?”
“yes,” ivan nods sadly. “from the convenience store.”
“understood.” quick on his feet, till grabs his keys and a coat, pulling it over his night clothes. “like i said, i can do it all. it won’t take too long.” till leans down, kisses ivan on his forehead before pulling up with a smile. “i won’t be long, baby. see you soon, okay?”
till makes it five steps away from their bed when a screeching from behind him stops him.
“where are you going?! waaaaaahhhhh!”
till’s mouth drops when he sees that ivan’s burst into tears. “baby, what?” he rushes back to his mate, drops to his knees next to him. “what’s wrong? why are you crying?”
but ivan is inconsolable. he cries and cries and cries.
till doesn’t know what to do. ivan was never one to cry easily. he only ever shed a tear when he felt overwhelmed by emotion, when he ‘felt super loved,’ as he used to say. but ever since the omega became pregnant, his emotions were all over the place, and the waterworks started a hell of a lot more easily than they should’ve. it’s like maneuvering over a minefield, and it looks like till has just stepped on one.
“ivan! ivan, baby,” till tries, gathering ivan into his arms and placing ivan’s head into the crook of his neck. “it’s okay, i’m here. i’m here. shh, baby.”
till lets out more of his pheromones, knowing that ivan adored his strong sandalwood scent and hoping it would ease his worries.
“i’m right here, ivan,” till whispers, carding his fingers through silky, black locks. “will you tell alpha what he did wrong? please?”
ivan sniffles, and till feels wetness touch his skin. “y-you were... you were l-leaving me,” ivan sobs out.
till is confused. “well, yes. you said you were craving ice cream, right?”
ivan nods timidly.
“then if i want to help you, i have to leave.”
a fresh wave of tears spring up at ivan’s lashline. “you... you’re so mean, alpha.”
till is at a loss. “i... i am?”
“yes! mean! mean alpha!”
“uhh...” till tries to lift ivan’s head so he could look at him, but the omega refused to budge from where he was settled. “ivan, why am i mean? what did i do?”
when ivan speaks, till can hear the utter heartbreak in the words.
“you were leaving without saying goodbye!”
and so, ivan cries and cries and cries some more, and till is left helpless as his strong omega wouldn’t let go of him.
“i said i would see you soon, didn’t i?” till says unsurely, patting ivan’s back empathetically. “doesn’t that count?”
and this time, ivan does lift his head, but only to glare something fierce at his mate. “no, it bloody well does not. you’re leaving me and the pup, the least you can do is say goodbye properly.”
till thinks it over, and because till is whipped for his mate, he completely agrees with ivan’s point.
“you’re right,” he nods sagely. “i should’ve done better. i’m your alpha, so it’s my duty to do right by you. i’m sorry, love.”
ivan buries himself even further into till, inhaling deeply to take in till’s scent. “it’s okay,” he mumbles. “sorry i’m like this. i just missed you so much all of a sudden.”
till smiles at that, unable to help himself. “god, you’re so cute. i have the best mate, don’t it?”
ivan smacks him half-heartedly. “we just went over this, tilly.”
“that we did,” till chuckles. ivan moves back a bit, and till takes the time to gaze into those beautiful dark orbs before he speaks again. “ivan, is your craving really strong?”
as if on cue, ivan’s stomach rumbles. till laughs as ivan whines. “don’t make fun!”
“okay, okay, haha. i’m going to go get some mango soft-serve for you, and i’ll come back as quick as i can. i won’t leave you or the pup alone for too long, i promise.”
ivan frowns. “okay...” he says reluctantly.
tills stands up again and takes one step back. “i miss you already, ivan. i’ll be back before you know it. bye, baby.”
a single tear rolls down ivan’s pink cheek as ivan hiccups. “b-bye bye, alpha. i-i love you.”
“i love you too, ivan.”
that should be it. till should feel free to leave the apartment and be on his way. however, this emotional, tearful goodbye doesn’t sit right in his stomach. so as ivan continues to silently cry, till stands there, looking between the door and his mate, conflicted.
he has a solution, but he’s hesitant to bring it up. as it is, he also cannot leave ivan in this sad state. who knows what this kind of sadness would do to the growing pup inside him? there could be some harmful aftereffects, and till cannot risk that.
“um... ivan?”
ivan blinks. “yes, alpha?”
till hesitates, not wanting to let the idea out, but his heart decides before his brain could ponder any longer.
“do you... want to come with me?”
despite till’s misgivings, this was absolutely the most correct thing he could’ve said, because ivan lights up like a christmas tree and gives him a smile so happy that till has to physically clutch his chest from how hard his heart starts beating.
“yes!” ivan beams, even with unshed tears in his eyes. “i want to come! please, alpha!”
till really doesn’t want to let him. a heavily pregnant omega walking to the convenience store at this hour? oh, till’s alpha really doesn’t like this. but it’ll be okay. till will be right next to him, ready to take care of his mate at every step.
so till smiles and holds out a hand. “c’mon, omega. let’s go get you that ice cream.”
ivan carefully gets out of bed and gives till the sweetest kiss he can muster.
and you know what?
it’s the best prize till can ask for.
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