dearly beloved | scömìche

38; the police station

Mitch lay awake the whole night, holding Scott's sweatshirt to his chest. Jake was asleep beside him, as Rick and Connie had taken his bedroom. Lauren was asleep on the pull-out couch, even though Mitch had tried to convince her to take his bed.

Mitch knew he would have a nightmare and wake Jake up if he tried to sleep, so he didn't. He was swimming in Scott's shirt, sweatshirt, and sweatpants, trying to drown himself in Scott's scent. Silent tears streamed down his cheeks.

The next morning, Mitch slipped into the bathroom and washed his face before Jake could wake up. He stared at his reflection, at his sad eyes. He missed his Alpha more than anything. He felt empty.

After a few minutes, he went to the kitchen to make breakfast for everyone. Gradually, the rest of the family trickled in, but Mitch could only smile weakly at them in greeting as he set the plates of eggs and bacon on the table. "Thanks, Momma," Jake said with a smile, hugging his leg, before he sat down and started to eat. Connie just kissed his cheek in thanks, Lauren gave him a quick hug, and Rick offered him a small smile. Mitch didn't eat.

"Jakey, do you wanna have a fun day today? Just you and your favorite aunt?" Lauren suggested during breakfast, and Jake's eyes lit up.

"Yeah! Can we go to the park? Please??"

Lauren laughed and reached over to ruffle his hair. "Of course. Anything you want."

As soon as Lauren and Jake left for the park, Mitch retrieved the picture of Scott, and Rick and Connie took him to the police station. Mitch clutched the side of the sweatshirt he was wearing with one hand and set the other over his Mark.

When they arrived, Mitch followed Rick up to the receptionist's desk, but he moved in front and placed the picture on the counter. "I filed a missing persons report last night, sir," he whispered. "My Alpha was kidnapped. Th-This is his picture."

The man smiled sympathetically and nodded, taking the photo. "Ah, yes, I remember. Thank you, honey. We'll find your Alpha as quickly as possible." Mitch turned away before the man could see his tears, but Rick forced a weak smile at him and began to lead the Omegas back to the car.

Suddenly, Mitch cried out in pain, his knees giving out. Rick's eyes widened, and he rushed forward to catch him. "Mitch?"

Mitch cried out again, louder that time, clutching at his stomach. "A-Alpha," he sobbed, his eyes glowing Omega blue.

Connie's heart jerked fearfully. "What? What about Scott? Is he okay?" she asked urgently as Rick lowered Mitch onto the floor.

Mitch screamed, not even noticing the various people emerging to see the commotion. "Alph-pha! Alpha, n-no!"

A lump formed in both Rick's and Connie's throats. "Mitchy, please, tell us what's going on," Rick begged. "Is our son okay?"

"Th-They're hurting him," Mitch sobbed, his entire body trembling almost violently. "They're h-h-hurt-ting h-him. S-Stop, please..." He knew perfectly well that his old Alphas couldn't hear him, but he was crying too hard to care.

Connie began to cry as well, and she brought him into a hug, letting him sob into her shirt.

+++

Mitch was numb for the rest of the day. He was out of it, only going through the motions of making lunch and later dinner for everyone. He didn't eat.

He spent the time daydreaming of Scott coming through that door and telling him that he was okay, he'd escaped, and Mitch's old Alphas would never come near them again. He daydreamed of waking up with Scott beside him, whispering that it was alright and he'd had a nightmare and it wasn't real, none of it was real, he was safe.

The gaping hole in his chest got larger with every passing second. Without Scott, he was incomplete. Broken. Scott was his other half, and Mitch genuinely believed he wouldn't ever smile again until his beloved was safe. He didn't know what he would do if they couldn't find him. He wouldn't be able to kill himself because he would still have to take care of Jake. Mitch didn't want to think about raising their son alone.

That night, Jake fell asleep quickly, but Mitch once again lay awake. He was still wearing Scott's sweatshirt, and he held two of his shirts to his chest, trying to trick himself into thinking that his beloved Alpha was beside him.