At First Blush

Chapter 34

He hadn't answered.

Julian frowned at his phone, sparkling wine in his other hand that he pretended to sip. He kept refreshing the notification center, to no avail. What the fuck? It had been over an hour. He never thought he was that boyfriend, but honestly. Ollie was good about having his phone on him, and good at replying to texts.

"Juls! Why are you skulking in a corner!"

Julian looked up, smiling wanly at Les, who was dressed in a red floor-length dress that had a sort of sheen to it. His rich olive skin seemed to glow in the mood lighting of Quinn's high-rise apartment, and the thigh-high slit and deep back plunge put more of it on display than Julian had ever seen off stage.

"Sorry, long day of bureaucratic meetings." He lied, tucking his phone away. He slammed back the wine, and went over to where Les was standing by the full length wall of window. He was standing next to another man in a dress, who Julian recognized instantly. Holy fuck.

He blinked, star struck, as Heart smiled his signature smile, holding his hand out. "Hello, darling. I can see you recognize me. How do you know Quinn?"

Julian took his hand, unsure if he was supposed to kiss it or shake it. He opted to kiss it, and Heart laughed, a silvery, musical sound. "Les introduced us," he managed.

Heart shifted his black shimmering cashmere shawl, letting it fall off his shoulders, revealing that the entire dress was held up by a thin string clasped around his neck. The fabric draped scandalously across his pecs, which were swollen and pink, indicating impending Heat. Heart coming out as an Omega had been a big deal. Like, one of the biggest deals. It was early days yet, but he was the front man of introducing and implementing unisex Omega-friendly workplace policies.

Calling upon his scattered braincells, he sucked in a deep breath, saying, "It's a pleasure to meet you. Omegas everywhere have needed a voice."

"And he truly has such a beautiful one," Les teased, and Heart snorted, swatting him with his clutch.

"Shut up, Les. And honestly, it's been a lot of trial and error. So I'm glad to hear my efforts are worthwhile." He gave Julian a soft, commiserating smile, and Julian's throat got tight as his phone stayed silent.

A huge, and that was no exaggeration, Alpha came over, holding a little tray of canapes. He smiled at Julian quickly, then ducked his head to press his face to the top of Heart's head, nuzzling his expertly styled bun and curls. Julian watched, fascinated, as Heart melted into his partner's arms. Heart lifted a hand, wrapping it affectionately around the Alpha's tie, just holding the fabric twined around his long, slim fingers. The couple had a conversation with their eyes, a lift of the corner of their lips, and soft exhales. A language all their own.

As he watched them, Julian's heart ached. He wanted that. That love, that trust, that connection with Ollie. He wanted to be able to go to faculty parties and hold his lover close, like it was the most natural thing in the world, instead of a hotly contested social issue.

He felt a hand on his elbow, and he started out of his trance, glancing up at Les, smiling sadly. But Les wasn't looking at him. And the hand on his elbow, which had been comforting, had grown tight, painful. And Julian knew the reason without even turning around. Adam had finally stopped being a coward.

He turned, ignoring Les's hissing, and saw his wayward roommate standing near the open kitchen, his honey blond hair styled, his body immaculately filling out his casual suit. He was standing very carefully, gaze and body language angled precisely at the Alpha and Beta he was talking to. Julian saw that it was their hosts, Quinn and Floris, with Floris mixing a drink while Quinn sat on the barstool, looking elegant and refined in his button up shirt.

Under the sheer power of their combined gazes, Adam finally took a lull in the conversation to glance over. His gaze fell on Julian, and he gave a small smile, but then his gaze flashed up, and was caught. Les caught his breath, his hand now shaking on Julian's elbow.

"That fucking bastard," he muttered, his voice breaking.

Julian opened his mouth to, what he didn't know, because as soon as he did, his phone started to ring. Every other thought in his head fled as he disentangled himself from Les's grasp and escaped to the balcony outside. It was lightly misting, but he didn't even care as he pulled his phone out and answered it, heart in his throat.

"Baby, God, you scared me. Why didn't you text me?"

There was silence on the other side, with a crinkling of static, like the connection wasn't great. Then, a soft, weak voice whispered, "Please. Help us."