At First Blush

Chapter 16

Ollie adjusted his mask once more, shifting nervously from foot to foot. This made a lot more sense in a semi-drunk infused haze at three in the morning. What if he was making a horrible mistake? What if Juls actually didn't want him, the bathroom encounter aside?

He bit his lip, his fingers curling around the handle on the Literary Building door. He exhaled. Even if Juls didn't want to date him in the end, at least there was a good chance of getting him out of his system if he agreed. Right? Ollie had to keep it light, casual. That's it. He nodded to himself, and took a deep breath.

Pulling open the door to the building, Ollie's gaze darted to the first-floor bathrooms, his cheeks heating instantly. Oh God. He really hoped no one else had tried to use the bathroom. Not that they'd ever recognize him. He hoped. Oh, fuck, he had a scent now.

Gulping, Ollie pushed that horrible thought from his mind as he went to the stairs. It was only a few floors, and honestly he needed to work off this nervous energy. He felt like he was going to vibrate out of his skin. Would he even be able to speak once he saw Juls again?

All too soon, he was on the right floor and his bravery stalled out. He edged his mask down a little, taking a deep lungful of air. His head swam with the onslaught of scents that were so powerful they burned his nose. But underneath all that, he could smell it. The scent of home. Juls.

The soft, sweet scent soothed him. It was shocking how it calmed his pounding heart. That made him smile. He could do this.

Moving carefully, just in case that Juls wasn't alone, Ollie approached the hallway. Juls's door was cracked open, but he didn't hear anything. He paused just out of sight of the door, listening. Silence, just the scratch of a pen.

"Ollie, I don't think you realize how strongly you scent."

Ollie jumped and sheepishly pushed the door open wider. Juls was sitting at his desk, red pen in hand, his lips curving gently in a soft smile. Ollie stepped in, leaving the door open, and looked around the office. It was covered with books and papers and little literary themed knickknacks. Best of all, it smelled like books and home and Juls.

"What can I do for you, Ollie?" Juls asked after a short silence only broken by the ticking of the clock and the scratch of the pen.

Ollie bit his lip, and sank into one of the chairs across from Juls. He clenched his hands in his lap, and forced his gaze from the desk to Juls's face. As his gaze met Juls's, he felt instantly calmed and frenzied. Most importantly, he felt such a strong rush of want that he couldn't breathe.

Juls's gaze went lightly gold, and he shifted in his seat. "Perhaps my office might not be the best place for this conversation?" He said, his voice low, pulling at Ollie's gut, heating his veins. Ollie shifted, trying to ignore the still new sensation of everything suddenly getting damp in his pants. Slick was fun in the moment, but every other time ever it was inconvenient at best, humiliating at worst.

He cleared his throat. "Here's fine. I just wanted to ask your help with something." Thank God his voice was steady.

Juls inclined his head, his dark curls shifting, looking so soft that Ollie ached to touch them again. "Oh? What can I help you with?" He said it pleasantly, conversationally, but Ollie knew they were both thinking about all the ways that Juls "helped" him during his Heat. Ollie flushed.

"I was wondering if you could teach me how to be an Omega."

Juls raised a brow. "Surely you took the Rank courses? Every student does."

"I did, but it didn't make sense to me at the time, being Unconfirmed. I have a few friends who are Omegas, but I don't feel comfortable asking them about..." he trailed off, holding his breath, hoping that Juls would take the bait.

"About...what? The mechanics? Any Google search would answer your questions."

He was going to be difficult then. Ollie frowned slightly. Fine. Time for the big guns. "I don't know anything about sex, and I wanted to ask you to help get a better idea of how to please an Alpha." He said, and was rewarded with the darkening of the gold in Juls's gaze.

Juls leaned back in his chair, running his tongue over his lips, and Ollie yearned to be able to lean across the desk and suck that clever, sinful tongue into his mouth. "Why me?" He asked finally. Ollie exhaled. Good. It wasn't an outright no.

"Because we're already sexually compatible and you know my body and I trust you. Besides, wouldn't it be safer for me to practice with someone Same-Rank? Trying to experiment with Alphas in my sensitized condition might not go very well." He paused, and added, deliberately, "I guess I could always ask Jax."

The sudden flare of heat arousal in the room made Ollie glad that his mask hid his grin. Juls stood, and went around Ollie to close the door. Ollie held still as he heard the flick of the lock. He felt Juls's warm body lean over him, and he shivered in anticipation.

"I know what you're doing, and I think you're a devious little brat," Juls murmured in his ear. His words were followed by his hot tongue running along the sensitive shell of Ollie's ear. Ollie bit his lip against a moan.

"I have some conditions, if we're going to do this...Omega training. Are you listening?" Juls bit the lobe of Ollie's ear and Ollie let out the tiniest gasp. "If we're going to do this, we will be doing it my way. Which means, what I say, goes."

"Yes," Ollie agreed without hesitation.

"Good boy. Second, keep this between us. It's in your best interest that no one knows about your involvement with another Omega."

Ollie's heart sunk, but he ignored it. Time enough to deal with that later. "I won't tell anyone." He promised.

He was rewarded by Juls licking a long stripe up the side of his neck, ending with him sucking on the tender patch of skin behind his ear that made Ollie's body light up like fireworks. He knew that his Slick was running freely, and debated how he could stand up so that he wouldn't stain his pants or the chair.

"And lastly, when I say we stop, we stop. What we're talking about is frowned upon and potentially dangerous. Two Omegas don't belong together."

Ollie caught his breath, turning to look up at Juls. "I don't understand."

Juls stood, running his fingers through his hair. "Same-Rank attraction is still considered taboo. And you haven't experienced it yet, but being a male Omega is hard. There are people out there, especially Alphas, who will say horrible, fucked up things to you. I can help you deal with it, but we cannot ever date, Ollie. One Omega is bad enough. Two? It'd be a nightmare. We'd be the butt of every joke, we'll be subjected to harassment and possibly even violence."

Ollie felt his heart breaking. He reached out to Juls, his hand trembling. Juls grasped it, his fingers long and warm and comforting. "Juls," he started, but was cut off by Juls kneeling in front of him, cupping his face. He felt Juls slip off his mask, and suddenly the world came into sharp relief. He turned his face, pressing his nose and mouth into Juls's wrist. "If you're just trying to scare me..." he murmured, casting an angry glance at Juls.

"I wish I was, baby. I really do. Things are getting better, but not enough that I want to risk you. Please understand, Ollie. I like you. I really, really like you. But what we have?" Juls broke off, brushing his thumb against Ollie's cheek, the motion both comforting and heartbreaking. "What we have, what we want, it's not safe. We'll have our time together, baby, but it can't be forever."

Ollie exhaled, closing his eyes. He knew it would be like this, that Juls would be against it. He knew it. But hearing it was so much more painful than expecting it. But, he had to take the chance. "I don't know about forever, all I know is that I want you, Juls." He said softly, risking a glance at Juls's face. He reached out, tracing a finger along Juls's cheekbones, marveling at the fine beauty of Juls's face.

Juls let go of his cheek and took Ollie's hand, pressing a kiss to his palm. "We may be making a mistake, but God help me, I really can't resist you, baby," he murmured into Ollie's skin, then looked up at him. His fingers curled around Ollie's chin, and he tugged him down into a kiss that felt like a promise and tasted like hope.