Understudy [ABO] [MxF] [18+]

T H R E E

The week-long heat was awful.

The suppressants had helped somewhat, Ally guessed. Although she still felt feverish and weak, she wasn't as out of control as she had been that first day. Gabe conceded to having the AC running full blast the entire time, but it almost made her feel worse seeing him walking around in full winter clothing while she was stripped down to just her underwear for the most part. He made sure no one else came to the apartment that week so she didn't have to worry about being caught off guard.

She had called Morgan the day after to explain everything to her, something that had been scarier than she thought it would be. At first, Morgan had refused to believe her, but as she explained more about her condition, she promised to help her in any way she could and would of course walk her home whenever she could. As a Beta, she couldn't fully comprehend what she was going through, but she had learned enough in high school sex-ed classes to realise she was particularly vulnerable now that her hormones were fully developed.

Ally had almost forgotten she agreed to the check-up until she got an email from the OHS clinic reminding her the morning of.

"I'm going to take you," Gabe said in a tone that left no room for argument. "Don't even try to tell me that you'll just take the train."

"I swear, I'm fine," Ally argued back as she pulled on her shirt. "My heat has ended! I don't have a fever anymore, see?" She grabbed his hand and pressed it to her forehead. "Stop being an overprotective pain in the ass. Who is the older sibling again?"

He frowned as he watched her putting her shoes on, "Still, it feels wrong to let you go on your own. I'll feel like shit it something happens without me there."

"I was more than capable of going places alone before, and I'm still more than capable now."

"But that was---"

"Just stop!" She snapped back, glaring at him. "I'm going by my fucking self, Gabe. You go back into your room and study for that exam tomorrow. End of story."

Still, after he had left, she found herself holding her key in her hand the entire way there.

"Thank you for agreeing to the testing," Dr Conte said as Ally sat in the chair, and he began to prep her arm for the blood tests.

"No problem, doc," she said, watching his fingers move deftly with interest.

"Did you have any more issues during your heat cycle? How did the suppressants go? They often aren't very effective for a first heat cycle."

"They didn't work perfectly, but it wasn't as horrible as before. Still feverish and uncomfortable for most of the week though. Gabe said my pheromones were so strong the neighbours were asking if he picked up baking as a hobby because there was a constant sweet smell coming from our room. Gabe? Baking? If that was the case, they would smell smoke coming from our apartment."