The Alpha and his Omega

Deus Ex Machina [Work/Life 3]

The call roused him from his sleep. Levi originally wanted to ignore it, but after hearing Eren murmuring and asking him to pick it up, he reluctantly slid out of the covers. After making sure his mate was safely asleep, he rolled out of the bed and made his way to the living room where the phone was still ringing.

"What?" There was a violent edge as he picked it up. Levi didn't recognize the number and whatever it was better be important. All he wanted to do was curl up under the covers with his mate and get back to sleep. He certainly did not want to deal with whatever fucker decided to wake him up at three in the morning on a fucking Wednesday.

"Levi Ackerman?"

"Yes?"

"This is Doctor Wesson from the United States penitentiary in Quinta. I would like to express my condolences for your uncle, Kenny Ackerman's, passing. He passed away an hour ago from heart failure and it said on file that you were–"

Click.

Hanging up the phone, Levi didn't know what to say. He wasn't even aware that he had hung up. It might have been better if it was a prank call, but it wasn't. The moment he realized what the voice on the line was saying, his mind reflexively shut down to kill the call. The phone rang a few more times, but he ignored it. Whatever needed to be said would end up going to voicemail anyways. His ears were relieved when it finally stopped ringing.

Slumping onto the cold floor, Levi let the torrent of emotions run through him. It had been automatic and done without any thought. If it weren't for the call being in the dead of night, he probably would be fine. Key word: probably.

He hadn't heard from the man or anyone linked to him for years now. In a way, Levi almost expected it to have happened sooner with Kenny's alcohol problems and violent tendencies. The alpha didn't fear his uncle as he had in his childhood, but that didn't mean the name didn't fill his head with dread. Or shock. Mainly the latter. His life under Kenny was far from great and any ties with his past had been lost after the man was incarcerated, but the news about his uncle still stunned him. That wasn't the entirety of what was running through his head though.

"Levi?"

Eren's groggy voice sounded, and Levi wearily lifted his head up to see his mate standing behind him, wrapped up and in sheet behind, the ends dragging behind like some ghost. He had hoped that the brat wouldn't figure him out, but the omega could probably smell the distress emanating from him. Not saying anything would only make things worse. Eren, being the caring, loving brat he was, would just worry about him. It was his mate's birthday in just over a week and Levi didn't want to stress his omega with the bad news.

"What's wrong?" He could feel the sleepy puffs of air as Eren breathed, and smell the muddled scent of sex and Eren, which were the alpha's favorite two scents, as the omega bent down to huddle against him. It was comforting. Eren nuzzled the top of his head and Levi felt his body warm a little. A hand reached out pulling him up and he stood up. "You're cold. C'mon, let's go back to bed."

Letting his mate drag him back to their bedroom like a piece of deadwood, Levi's mind couldn't process much. His brain was still hazy from being woken up from his sleep and the shock of hearing about Kenny's death as he mulled over the facts. On some deep level, the news itself wasn't a huge surprise, but hearing it was one thing, whereas dealing with it was an entirely different matter.

Sliding back under the warm covers with Eren, Levi was at a standstill with how to deal with it. For once, he was the one curling into the younger male's embrace. Even only half-awake, the omega was offering the greatest comfort just by being there. Since dragging him back to bed, Eren hadn't said anything else, but he knew the omega was still awake with the gentle stroking against his back.