The Hidden Omega (NSB)

The heat

Over the next few days, the members noticed Kane's behavior getting worse instead of better. He was snapping at them over little things, and it was getting hard to keep things normal when Kane would get irritated over any small joke.

Everyone was trying to be understanding, but their patience for the attitude was slowly dissipating. "I can't put up with this much longer," Sebastian said. "Manager Ty said he would be better soon, but this isn't better," He added.

"I know, but whatever is going on is his business. We just have to keep being supportive however we can." Oliver said though he was also feeling very frustrated. Not only with Kane but also with himself for not being able to help more.

Kane was spending as much time as he could in his room away from the others. He was stuck between thinking everything was a symptom of heat and trying to explain away everything that could be a symptom of heat. He had started getting cramps about an hour ago, and his first thought had been heat cramps, but then he reminded himself that he hadn't eaten all day, and they were probably just hunger pains. 'What if they aren't just hunger pains?' his mind supplied unhelpfully, causing Kane to groan.

That night Kane got an undeniable symptom. He woke up in a layer of sweat with an uncomfortable feeling swirling around in his stomach. He noticed someone by his bed when he woke up and sat up quickly. He didn't feel hot enough to have burned through his scent blockers, but he was scared that one of the alphas might have smelt him.

"It's me. It's Darren. I'm going to take you to the pack room. Come on." The person, Darren, said.

Kane was confused, but he went along with Darren anyway. When they got to the pack room, he saw a pile of clothes and a few blankets on the bed. He vaguely remembered his conversation with Ryan from a few days ago.

"Lock the door when I leave. There's already a few bottles of water and some snacks in here, but I'm sure manager Ty will bring you some more later on." Darren was talking quickly, and then he was heading to leave.

Kane grabbed his arm. "Wait, h-how did you know?" He asked.

"I accidentally found your suppressants when I was looking for a pair of socks to borrow. I figured you didn't want us to know, so I just pretended that I didn't see them." He explained.

Kane felt like he could cry, though he knew it was only because the heat made him emotional. He let Darren go so that he could leave.

"One more thing, before you get heat brain. Do you want any of the alphas to... you know, help?" Darren asked.

"I don't think any of them would want to help, but I've also never spent my heat with an alpha before, so I don't think I need anyone to help. So right now, the answer is no, but if I change my mind later, I'll let you guys know. Not when I have heat brain but during the in-between when I have a clear head." He answered. He felt awkward talking about heat-related things with someone who wasn't his brother, but he had to admit it felt kind of nice being able to rely on someone.

Darren nodded, and then he left the room. The door locked behind him, and he decided to stay there for now. Darren had found out a while ago about Kane, and in his mind, he had already accepted Kane as an omega. Finding out didn't change anything at the time, but he has been doing many things purely out of instinct in the past few days.

When he noticed the change in Kane's behavior, something told him that his friend would be going into heat. That's when he started getting a lot of new instincts. He began to feel protective of Kane, and he had to hold himself back from snapping at the others when they would complain about Kane's mood.

He also wanted to take care of him. Keeping Kane comfortable and healthy slowly became a top priority over the past few days, and it's what made him steal everyone's clothes. He knew that Kane would feel better if he could nest with his pack member's scents once the heat hit.

Now his instincts were telling him to stay outside the door and protect the omega inside. The pack room had basic soundproofing and could contain scents well, but it wasn't 100%. He knew once the heat hit fully, the other members would smell an omega, and it made him feel protective. These protective feelings were new and weird for him, and he had never had a reason to feel protective over Kane before.

As the smell hit him, he tensed up, not because of the heat scent since omegas heats didn't affect beta's, but because of the anticipation of the alphas' reactions.