Chapter 2

Morgan and he had a number of classes together and for all his occasional dramatics, he was a chill guy to be around.

Especially compared to the way too energetic beta that had permanently attached himself to Julian's side during his freshman year.

He'd been incapable of outright telling the guy to leave him alone, while said leech had been just as bad at taking a hint.

His friends - Theodore that traitor included - had found the entire thing highly amusing, refusing to be of any help, but much to Julian's relief, his stalker had met his mate over the summer and consequently lost all interest in Julian.

Compared to that, Morgan was the ideal college buddy.

They got along well, but weren't close enough to distract each other too much during classes.

In contrast, he'd had one general requirement class with Theodore during his freshman year and it hadn't ended well for either of them.

The only thing that had saved them from the cruel fate of a failing grade was Julian's stubborn refusal to fail and the fact that Theodore was the most intelligent and most hard-working person Julian knew - Nathaniel and his freakishly high IQ included.

The inside of the econ building had been blessedly cool and compared to that he felt himself break out in a light sweat from nothing more than the insignificant hike across the lawn.

Shrugging off his backpack and stripping out of his open button-down shirt to the white tshirt beneath, Julian let himself sink down onto the grass in a cross-legged sprawl as soon as he joined his friends in the shade.

"Remind me again why you guys thought it would be a good idea to have lunch outside?

It's too hot for this."

"Fresh air is good for you, kid.

And Hugo made the mistake of hooking up with a close acquaintance of his and he needs to avoid her for the next few days," Owen answered in that lazy drawl of his, giving him an unimpressed look when Julian made a face at Hugo.

A moment later the beta's gaze flitted to the side, breaking the prolonged eye-contact.

As a child it had upset Julian, how other kids never seemed to want to hold his gaze.

Theodore never looked away from him like that and Julian just couldn't understand why everyone else seemed to dislike him that much.

It wasn't until his parents had explained to him that Theodore's ability to hold his gaze was something very special that Julian had stopped being upset.

The fact that the other kids never held his gaze for long didn't mean they hated him.

It just meant that they recognized him as an alpha and had no intentions of challenging his dominance.

Back then Julian hadn't really understood.

But he'd always had Theodore at this side, completely unimpressed by Julian's so-called

dominance

, and the alpha had decided that was all that mattered.

Letting his friends' undoubtedly chaotic conversation lull him into a semi-relaxed state without actually listening to what they were saying, he lazily considered lying down for a short nap.

But then he felt the prickle of awareness on his nape and craned his neck around far enough to spot Theodore walking up to them.

The omgega's long legs were eating up ground at his usual, brisk pace and had his hair flopping with every step.

He'd clearly been on lunch provision duty, because the second he reached their circle, he dropped the large paper bag in his hand in front of them and had their friends descending on it like a pack of starved wolves.

Julian on the other hand didn't even have time to find out what was on the menu.

Instead of lowering himself onto the grass next to Julian, Theodore plopped down in his lap, winding his arm around the alpha's shoulders and Julian's hands automatically settled on his waist to steady the omega.

"Alpha creepin' on two o'clock."

It took Julian only a few moments to spot the woman staring at Theodore with intense focus.

She was sitting among her friends in the shade of another tree and he felt the tiny hairs on his arms and nape rise in an instinctive reaction.

It was a testament of how attractive Theodore must have seemed to her that it took her several seconds to become aware of Julian's unblinking gaze.

Not to mention the way the omega was currently draped all over him.

The tension in the air multiplied by a tenfold as the alpha finally met Julian's gaze, eyes flashing with something that might have been challenge, before she seemed to realize what she was doing.

And still it took the female alpha a few more, mostly defiant moments of bristling staring before she averted her gaze and returned her attention to her friends.

Theodore's hand petting the tense expanse of his nape was all it took for Julian to snap out of the aftermath of his visual pissing contest, head turning back around and finding Theodore smiling at him from just a few inches away.

"Thanks."

Julian hadn't been aware of the growl trapped in his throat until he opened his mouth to reply and his words rumbled out, spiced with a wholly unintentional menace.

The sound had all of his friends - except for a totally unconcerned Theodore - going completely motionless.

"You're welcome."

From the corner of his eye, he could see Cy's head snapping up, the only other alpha in their circle clearly unable to ignore the rough sound.

But his focus was still on Theodore, who raised an eyebrow at him as he slid out of his lap and into the empty spot next to him.

"What's with the alpha voice?"

"You know I can't help it," Julian shot back with a glower, clearing his throat to get rid of the annoying gravel in his voice.

"Right, I'm sure those 'I'm the big bad alpha' instincts must be a bitch to deal with."

Theodore sounded way too amused, the smile on his face growing even brighter, while Julian's scowl only darkened.

"You suck."

"Eh, you love me."

Just like that he was forced into irritated silence, because as much as it annoyed him, Theodore was totally right - and knew it.

So he settled for pulling a face at his best friend, which had the omega playfully butting his head against Julian's shoulder with a warm, satisfied laugh.

"Everyone knows I'm your favorite, Jules.

There's no use denying it."

Another inconvenient truth Julian would rather ignore at the moment, but really couldn't.

Not when Theodore just kept on smiling that box-shaped smile and nudging his shoulder with his own.

"Relax, Christopher."

Owen's softly spoken words had Julian and Theodore swivelling their heads towards the only other omega in their group, to find him sitting there, still completely motionless, sandwich frozen half-way to his mouth and eyes so wide, he reminded Julian of a deer caught in the headlights of a rapidly approaching truck.

It took Hugo curling his hand around his nape to finally pull him out of his rigor.

"Come on, Kit.

There's no reason to play dead.

Jules here is all bark and no bite."

For a second Julian wondered if he should feel offended by Theodore's appraisal of him, but ultimately settled for hooking his arm around the omega's neck and pulling him in until their sides were firmly pressed together again.

It was a move his best friend was very familiar with.

The pull into his side was sharp enough to tell Theodore that Julian wasn't all that happy with him, but also making it impossible for his best friend to move away from him.

Not that Theodore ever actually tried.

"Easier said than done.

I'm not used to hanging out with alphas, this is stressing me out!

I have no idea how you do it, Theodore."

Christopher looked so genuinely puzzled, Julian was suddenly reminded of the fact that it had only been a few weeks since they had met the other omega.

The other man still had trouble grasping the fact that Theodore didn't give a single damn about status and most people's warped idea of how an omega should behave.

"Please, I've known this guy since he was three years old.

One time I've seen him throw a fit and cry because his mom wouldn't let him have cereal for dinner.

Nothing he does could ever seem intimidating after that."

"Kids get upset about small things, you know," Christopher was quick to come to Julian's defense.

"That was in his last year of middle school."

"Hey!" Cheeks flushing a deep red, he shoved Theodore over and wrestled him to the ground, the omega beneath him in two seconds flat.

Mostly because his best friend didn't even pretend to put up a fight, too busy laughing that deep, full-bodied belly laugh of his.

Around them the rest of the guys burst into gleeful laughter and even Christopher's lips tugged up at the corner, even though he heroically held off the laugh that was clearly trying to be let out.

"First of all, there's no shame in crying over Fruit Loops, and secondly, you're all assholes."