The Reluctant Omega

Alleyway of Doom...or Destiny?

Grey knew it was late. Later than he should have been out, but he wasn't really all that worried. At six feet tall, he looked pretty intimidating. He wasn't super jacked, but he had a decent amount of muscle and he was lean and toned. People assumed he was an Alpha, simply because he was tall and handsome, but when they realized he didn't produce pheromones, they figured he was just a Beta. He was fine with that. Very few people knew he was actually an Omega. He was recessive and never had a heat cycle, not even a mild one. Grey was fine with that, too. He wasn't interested in settling down. His two older brothers were Alphas and he saw firsthand how nauseating they acted around their partners. He couldn't for the life of him understand why anybody would willingly live their life that way, basically a slave to their instincts, but to each their own, he guessed.

Grey had been out drinking with a few friends. Not so much that he was completely wasted, but he was pleasantly buzzed as he made his way back to his apartment. It had been a long, tiring week at work and he was looking forward to tonight. A chance to catch up with his friends and drink and play pool. He hadn't really planned on being out this late, but his apartment wasn't far from the bar. Grey had just walked past an alleyway when he heard angry shouting. He halted to a stop and peeked around the corner of the wall, curious. He saw three very tall men, most likely Alphas, cornering a smaller female against a dumpster. She was looking up at them with wide, frightened eyes. Grey cursed softly under his breath and thought about calling the police, but by the time they would get here, it would probably be too late. He wasn't a great fighter and it would be physically impossible for him to take on three Alphas. Maybe he could distract them long enough for her to get away and then he could nope on out of there as well. Grey took a deep breath before stepping into the alleyway.
"Hey," he barked sharply, "what's going on here?" The three Alphas all turned to face him and he tried motioning for the girl to run. She dodged out from behind the Alphas and ran off. One of the Alphas turned to start after her, but the one in the middle grabbed his arm, stopping him.
"Since you ruined our fun, you'll have to pay for it instead." He growled angrily. Grey didn't hesitate and whirled around, taking off. He wasn't a fast runner and since he was pretty buzzed, he was stumbling a little. He just hoped the Alphas would lose interest and give up. He was wrong. They were fast and quickly caught him. Grey felt a hand grab the neckline of his t-shirt and jerk him back. He was slammed against the brick wall of a building behind him, the air knocked out of his lungs, and crumpled to the ground. He barely got his arms up to protect himself when they started kicking him. Pain exploded through his body with every blow. He tried curling up to protect his ribs. Suddenly, he heard loud voices shouting and thankfully, the kicks stopped. Grey groaned softly, trying to sit up and saw four equally large Alphas charging down the sidewalk towards them. The three decided it was time to get the hell out of there and took off. Three of the Alphas kept after them until they disappeared around the corner. One stayed behind and crouched down by Grey.
"Hey, buddy," he asked a concerned look on his face, "you ok?"
"I've been better." Grey choked out, wincing when he tried sitting up straighter. The man chuckled softly.
"Here, I'll help you up." He said as he drew closer and slipped an arm under Grey's shoulders. Grey groaned as he stumbled to his feet, leaning against the man for support. His other three rescuers returned.
"They ran off." One said frowning.
"Can you walk," the Alpha that was holding him up asked, "you can rest for a bit at our bar?"
"Yeah, sounds good." Grey said. He burned everywhere they had kicked him and he knew he was going to end up bruised. He staggered along with the four to a bar just down the sidewalk. They walked in and the man helped Grey slide onto a stool by the bartop. It looked like it was closed for the night and they were cleaning up.
"Oh, thank goodness, you're ok!" He heard a woman exclaim. Grey looked up and saw it was the girl he rescued from the alleyway. She rushed over to him, hugging him tightly. He hissed in pain, flinching.
"Sorry," she cried out, jumping back, quickly releasing him, "I was just so worried...thank you. You saved my life!"
"Hanna works here," the man said, "she came running in and said some Alphas were causing trouble."
"I was just going to my car when they grabbed me," she said, her lower lip trembling, "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't stepped in."
"Does it feel like anything is broken," the man asked, turning to him, "do you need to go to the hospital?"
"No, I don't think so," Grey replied, wrapping an arm around his waist, "probably just bruised...I'll be fine."
"Do you want some water," one of the other men asked, "I might have some painkillers too?"
"Yeah, sure," Grey replied, "thanks." The man nodded before turning to leave.
"I'm Jaxon Pace." The man that helped him walk said, extending his hand.
"Greyson...McLane." Grey said, shaking his hand. Jaxon held his hand for just a bit too long before finally releasing him. The other man came back with a bottle of cold water and some painkillers. Grey took them gratefully and swallowed a couple of pills.
"Is your car nearby," Jaxon asked as Grey sipped his water, "I can walk with you to it?" Grey shook his head.
"I was walking back to my apartment," he replied, "it's a few blocks away, so I didn't bother driving."
"I can give you a ride," Jaxon stated, "you shouldn't walk back." Grey didn't bother arguing. He was pretty sure he couldn't walk all the way back either. He was able to get up on his own and follow Jaxon out to his truck. Hanna thanked him again before they drove off. He gave Jaxon directions to his apartment building, sighing deeply when the painkillers started kicking in. Jaxon coasted to a stop by the curb.
"Do you need help getting to your apartment?" He asked, turning to Grey.
"There's an elevator," he replied, "I'll be fine, thanks." Grey reached for the door handle, but Jaxon wasn't ready for him to leave yet. He was afraid this might be the last time he ever saw him.
"Wait!" Jaxon exclaimed. Grey flinched and looked to him, eyes widening slightly.
"Umm...Hanna is like a sister to me and I'm just so grateful you were there." He said quietly. Grey tried shrugging, but it hurt.
"I'd like to hope anybody would have helped too if they could," he said, "I just happened to be there is all."
"Do you think I could buy you a coffee or something tomorrow...you know just to thank you properly?" Jaxon asked softly. Grey hesitated, letting out a small huff. He should probably just call it even then and there. He helped Hanna and Jaxon helped him so they should be good right? But before he realized what he was doing, he was accepting.
"Umm...yeah I guess that would be alright," he murmured, "but...umm...maybe like give me a day to recover first?" Jaxon chuckled awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Yeah, sure that would probably be best," he said reaching into his pocket, "here...add your number so I can text you tomorrow to see how you're feeling." Grey reluctantly took his phone and typed his number into the guy's contacts.
"Well, thanks for the ride," he said, finally opening the door, "later." Jaxon watched the young man as he made his way slowly and carefully inside. He didn't leave until he had disappeared from view. He grinned widely as he headed back to the bar. Maybe destiny decided to get involved tonight by putting Grey in his sights. Because Greyson McLane was definitely his type.