In the ten minutes it took to get to campus, the two of us talked about classes and our general plans. I told him how I wanted to be a history scholar and he told me how he wanted to be a drama scholar. The fact that he preferred the drama department over athletics was news to me. It wasn't that I doubted his resolve. I just remembered how much he used to enjoy sports in high school.

I also had to apologize to all of my previous friends that entered into extreme relationships. Though I wasn't exactly smitten with the blue German Shepherd, he asked if he could walk me to my first class of the day and out of my last class of the day and I said yes. I even allowed him to hold my hand and to give me a parting peck on the lips.

Yes, it was all still quite sickening...but, now it was the kind of "sickening" I could handle. The rumor mill, however, was an entirely different beast as I found out a few hours later.

"Avion!" Sabine called out as she ran right over to me and stopped to catch her breath. "I heard...your...Alpha...drama department."

How did the news spread so freaking fast? "Y-Yeah. My mystery Alpha's really Lexus from the drama department," I affirmed.

Her green eyes were practically sparkling. "What a hunk!" she squealed. "Does Morgan know?"

"Not yet," I admitted, feeling a bit sheepish knowing that he probably heard it as a rumor first. "He's probably gonna give me an earful later."

"Why didn't you tell him first?" She questioned, as if indignant for his sake.

"Because I had no clue what I was doing until I was actually doing it, that's why," I tried to explain with zero eloquence.

"Well, then I'm glad I'm not you right now," she snickered.

"Gee, thanks."

::::

Sure enough, Morgan had the most petulant look on his face...like a child whose favorite show had been recorded over or deleted. It took all my will not to laugh at the sight.

"Hey, I did promise you all of the details," I offered as an olive branch.

"Then, spill already!" Morgan whined. "Lexus? Like Lexus, the guy who transferred in during our second half of Sophomore year in high school? Mr. I'm-so-good-at-all-these-sports, even volleyball?"

"Yeah, that'd be the one."

"How the heck did this happen?"

"I'm still wondering the same!"

"...so he's Mr. Dark Chocolate?"

"Yep."

"Mr. Alpha Scaredy Pants?"

"Mm-hmm."

"The Faceless Bus Stalker?"

"My FBS, indeed."

"Holy shit!"

"My sentiments exactly, bestie," I concluded.

After I told him a few more details about my nightmare and how I used it to help recognize his voice, outing Lexus in the process, Morgan finally stopped pouting about having heard about it through the rumor mill. I told him of my concerns and how I was still wary of everything having to do with the Alpha- Omega dynamic. But, that he might want to take his time getting back to the apartment just in case I decided to jump Lex's bones that night.

::::

Lunch time was a bit nerve-wracking. Sabine was practically glued to my side in the hope that Lexus would make himself known and sit with us. She wasn't disappointed. Lex found us easily and sat down right next to me. Sabine quickly changed seats so that she could sit at his other side and began to interrogate him.

Thankfully, Derrick and Deziray joined us, as well. They served as a decent enough distraction to Sabine so that I was able to talk to Lexus for a bit, as well.

"Morgan nearly had a fit because I didn't tell him before rumors started running amok," I relayed.

"Sorry to hear that," Lexus replied.

"To be fair, I still wasn't sure about all this until you came out of the car and faced me," I admitted. "No antics, no commands. Just you."

A smile lit up his face. "I'm more grateful for this chance than you know," he confessed. "Thanks for taking the plunge with me."

"Oh, I wouldn't call it a "plunge" just yet, but I think I get what you mean," I acknowledged. Before I changed the subject to a more serious matter, I urged Lexus to take a walk with me and said goodbye to my lunch buddies.

We ducked into an empty hallway so I wouldn't be under the sun and I looked up at him. "Lex...you, more than most, know about my past with...with Nestor and Ashur."

A slight frown formed on his face and he nodded.

"I know that it's just the way things are, Alpha commands have always been used in the past for pack safety," I began. "But, can you put yourself in my shoes for a moment? How would you feel if you had no choice but to obey, no matter what the command is?"

I found myself staring down at the ground. But, he took my face into his hands and lifted it up until I was looking into his eyes.

"Avi, I swear to you that I will never use an Alpha command on you or anyone else from this point onwards," he vowed.

I felt strange tears brimming in my eyes. He had such kind intentions. But, I didn't believe it for one second. It was in an Alpha's nature to command others in dire situations, just as it was in mine to rebel against them. But, we could try.

"If you do your best to try to keep that promise," I added. "Then I also promise to try to follow your lead and be obedient, within reason."

He bent down as if to kiss me, but stopped before closing the distance, as if to give me the choice. I didn't hesitate to meet him the rest of the way. Physical intimacy was not the problem. The attraction between us could have existed beneath the surface ever since we were both in high school. Whether we could take on one another's baggage was another issue entirely.

The next thing I knew, I was up against the wall with my legs wrapped around his waist and our tongues were trying to memorize the shape of each other's mouths. My body quickly reminded me how badly it wanted to complete our bond by making me hard as fuck at the same time as creating that odd secretion once again, as if my lower half were getting ready to be speared all by itself.

I felt Lexus chuckling against my mouth when I began to squirm and grind against him. He unfortunately pulled away despite my desperate keening.

"Yeah, me too," he agreed, pressing his own hardness against me. "I want you just as bad, believe me. But..."

The sound of the hallway door opening startled me and I all but clung to Lex's form.

"...we're still on campus," he concluded as students started to walk past us both. He set me back onto my feet with care. "I'd be more than willing to continue where we left off whenever you want."

"Tonight at 5:30 in my room," I suggested. "Morgan doesn't get back til 8:30."

"Then, expect to have me 5:30."

Oh, I certainly intended to.