The ABO Serum

Exposed, Or Not

While Brad underwent follow up treatment, unconscious in the GenLife lab, Richard stayed in Carey's house. Carey turned out to be the name of the Director's omega partner. Since Richard wasn't exposed to the serum, they weren't worried about keeping him under observation, but there weren't any high-class hotels in town to put up their billionaire investor and Carey was as reluctant to let him intrude on Daryl's posh nest as the owner.

It was remarkable how instantaneously Carey's heart moved out of the home he'd grown up in. All those attachments, memories with his parents who sold him the house when they retired to Florida, were nothing compared to his attachment to his alpha. He knew that he knew that he knew their spark ignited before their exposure to the serum but given this latest information he had to wonder if humans had fated mates to begin with and were normally too insensitive to detect them. How lucky was he to find his? Without GenLife they'd never have been in the same state, let alone neighbors. It was a miracle that he would hold onto for all he was worth.

Carey drove their guest to his house and made sure it was ready for company. The guest bed always had clean sheets and he kept the attached bathroom stocked with basic toiletries. A few things needed to be tossed from the fridge, so he did that, and showed Richard where the laundry room was and how to use the TV. He grabbed some fresh clothes for himself and returned to the lab, leaving Richard to stew in his anxiety in comfort and peace.

This wasn't working for Richard. He called a cab and went to the local car dealership to buy a suitable vehicle for a longer stay, then to the local mall where he picked up new suitcases and a wardrobe for himself and Brad. It was something to do. Brad usually managed these kinds of tasks for him, so it was a novelty doing his own shopping. He went to the movies, then dinner, then a bar. It was all pointless and completely failed to distract him from the memory of Brad lying helpless on a gurney.

He thought about trying to pick up a companion for the night in the bar but every time he considered a particular partner it made him nauseous. He went back to the house and dug through Carey's cupboards looking for a sleeping pill. In the end he didn't find one and didn't need one. He lay down with the TV on for distraction and fell asleep quickly.

For three days he pestered Daryl and Carey with text messages asking for updates, but the news stayed the same. He's unconscious but seems to be responding to treatment. Then, the messages stopped. After 8 hours of nothing Carey grabbed a security guard and drove to his house. He found Richard curled up on the couch crying and smelling strongly of omega.

"Shit! You weren't exposed! What happened?" Carey exclaimed, but Richard couldn't answer. "You must be desperate for the follow up treatments now, too. Thank god you're not unconscious." He picked up Richard with the help of the security guard and got him into the car. But where to? The hotel where they isolated the omegas or back with his alpha? This was too different. They needed to examine him at the lab before deciding so that's where Carey drove them.

"How was he exposed?" Carey asked when Daryl met them at the car to pull Richard out.

"I have a guess, but I don't like it." Daryl answered. "They had sex and he observed an abnormal amount of semen."

"No," Carey exclaimed. Oh, this was so much worse now. If the semen of an alpha could start the transition...oh no.

"They're both exuding massive amounts of pheromones. For now, let's get them in the same room and see if it calms them down. We can administer the follow up doses," Daryl was saying as he transferred Richard from the car to another gurney.

Richard's eyes drooped closed with relief knowing that he would soon be next to Brad, but Carey shook him until he opened them again. "Stay conscious until we get you the next dose. We haven't figured how to wake up sleeping beauty up there yet. We don't need you unconscious in that way too."

They administered the next dose without a complete exam because it was an emergency, but a full assessment followed. Rather than take him out to various exam rooms, they wheeled equipment in and kept Richard next to Brad for both their sakes. Their heart rates calmed back down into normal rhythms and the pheromones ceased their overproduction.

Dr. Martin wheeled an ultrasound machine in and confirmed what was already apparent. Richard was transitioning to omega. A tiny womb and egg sacs were visible. Richard looked at the screen in awe. When they finally wheeled the last of the equipment away and told him he could sleep now he climbed out of his own bed and snuggled up to Brad in his, being careful of the tubes and wires.

"Did you hear that babe? I've got a womb forming. I'm gonna be able to have your babies just like you wanted." Tears formed in his eyes as he gripped tightly his unresponsive friend and lover. "It was a solid investment, despite all this mess. You gotta wake up and get me pregnant before those other guys. I wanna be the first. I'll make you so proud. I'll be on all the PTA boards and I'll learn to cook so you can have the Stepford wife trifecta. You don't have to worry about anybody else. I just want you. So, wake up and hold me again babe. I'm all yours." He finally fell asleep like this, desperately clinging to his alpha whispering sweet promises.

"Should we put him back in his own bed?" The lab tech on observation duty asked.

"No. This is better than any medicine we've got for them," Dr. Martin answered. "Look." He pointed to the screen tracking Brad's brain activity.

"Is he coming out of it?" The tech asked.

"Looks like it. If the pattern holds, they'll be fucking like rabbits when they wake up and it will be dangerous to interrupt," Dr. Martin cautioned.

"But sir, the catheter?" The tech asked.

"Shit." Dr. Martin looked at the monitors for another few minutes before making the decision. He pulled the feeding tube, catheter, IV, and other extraneous monitors while the patient remained unconscious. If he were wrong, they'd have to reset them all in the morning, but he believed in the power of the alpha/omega connection...that this alpha would wake up now that his omega was near and in need of him.