My closet was full of clothing of all sizes. Sometimes I felt like wearing close-fitting clothes and other times I felt like wearing baggy, large, and comfortable clothes. So, it wasn’t that hard for me to find a pair of gym shorts (not those super tiny ones with slits on the side, long ones that almost came down to the knees and had a drawstring) and large shirt for Lexus to wear. When it came to boxers, I knew there was no way he’d fit into mine, so he chose to go commando. How difficult it was for me to stop thinking about that and to keep from molesting him.

When we were both in clean, comfortable clothing, I hid my ‘special pillow’ somewhere in the corner of my closet and the two of us sat down next to each other on the couch of the living room. No real cuddling was involved, since I guess we both didn’t want to spark up another rutting session. But, as we talked we threaded our fingers through each other’s hands and gave each other little touches. It was a way to kind of ground us without giving Morgan a porn show when he got back, which would be soon.

“So, about that pillow…” Lexus teased.

I scrunched up my nose. “Let’s not talk about my special pillow. My canine form needed an outlet, too,” I defended.

Outlet? “Do you think of me as an outlet?” Lex asked.

“Shit,” I hissed. I was still hearing his thoughts every now and then, or what I perceived to be his thoughts. I knew that I wasn’t catching all of them, but it still felt quite intrusive. “No, I didn’t mean it that way. I need to stop blurting things out without thinking.”

He gave me another one of his sweet smiles. I wanted to kiss him, but I forced that urge down. “Come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve seen your canine form yet.”

“Easily arranged,” He said as he let my hand go and sat with his legs crossed on his side of the couch.

The shift was seamless. But, then again, he had three more years of practice than I did. His entire body became the same hue as his hair and then shrank and changed until a blue German Shepherd sat in his place. He was easily three times bigger than my canine form, if not four. Though the fur was definitely black, it had a slight shade of soft blue mixed in that made it look a bit lighter than just a harsh and solid black. His blue eyes couldn’t have stood out more in his canine form.

I wrapped my arms around him and nuzzled his fur, my fingers gently scratching him in different areas. I had fought larger dogs many times in my life. My tiny canine form usually came out of those fights in worse shape than the Alphas. But, the Alpha in front of me was soft and warm. He didn’t radiate an ounce of intimidation.

He smells so good. I don’t want him to stop petting and scratching me. Would he allow me to lick him?

…and, of course, the reason I didn’t find him intimidating could be because I could hear some of his thoughts.

“Give me a sec,” I said as I got off the couch and sat down on the floor. Though my transition wasn’t as smooth as Lex’s, I allowed the change to take over until I was looking up at him from a much, much lower line of vision.

Lexus immediately hopped off the couch and began to do what I call the “happy dance.” The movements that our canine forms did whenever we were ecstatically excited about something in front of us. He leaned down on his forelegs to look at me, his rump high in the air and his tail wagging. Then, he quickly trotted around me as if to view me at all angles. He turned around in place a few times before pressing his nose to my side in affection and I couldn’t help but roll onto my back to offer him my belly.

Lexus let out a bark of joy. He trusted me with his underside! I’ve never seen this side of him. Just look at him!

I tilted my head slightly to keep him in my line of vision even though I knew it would make me look like a curved croissant on the ground.

...and that’s how Morgan found us.

“Wow, Avion,” Morgan teased. “If that’s your idea of ‘jumping his bones,’ I don’t think you’re doing it quite right.”

I rolled back onto my feet and shifted back. Anything that touched our skin merely shifted along with us without any repercussions. It had something to do with evolution and adaptation. Our bodies eventually evolved to treat clothes as a second skin and it allowed us to shift back and forth without much difficulty. When we first learned how to shift as pups, the hard part was figuring out how to shift with accessories. May times, objects like sunglasses, necklaces, watches, and belts were left unchanged and on the ground until we learned how to treat accessories like extensions of our bodies, as well.

I shook my head as I rose to my feet just as Lexus began to shift back. “Morgan, I know you know who Lex is, but I’m officially introducing him to you as my bonded Alpha and mate,” I announced. “Lexus, I know you know who Morgan is, but I’m officially introducing him to you as my best friend and brother-from-another-mother.”

I felt a strange warmth when I saw the two of them shaking hands amiably only to feel a little disgusted with myself afterward. Really? I was getting all sappy because my bestie and my unexpected-partner seemed to get along? The worst part was that it wasn’t even an Omega thing, they were my real, genuine feelings.

You know what? I may have been a sap deep inside, but I sure as hell wasn’t gonna show it.

I cleared my throat. “Well, since Morgan’s back, that means it’s getting pretty late. Let me go get your bag of clothes and I’ll walk you out to your car,” I suggested.

I tried not to snicker at the look on my friend’s face when he began to analyze the clothes I let Lexus borrow.

A few moments later, Lexus and I were practically making outside in front of the apartment door. It wasn’t the kind of parting kiss I thought I was gonna give him. Once I felt those soft lips against mine, I couldn’t help but want to all but devour him. If he hadn’t found the will to pull away, we might have ended up giving Morgan a show through the peephole.

The only reason I knew that Mor had been watching was because he was literally on the other side of the door when I opened it again to get inside. By the look in his light brown eyes, he wasn’t going to let me live any of it down.

Morgan’s grin couldn’t have been more wide or mischievous as he tossed himself onto the couch on his back dramatically. “Oh Lexus,” he teased. “You know that I am the most adorable Yorkie in the world, just look at my soft white tummy and fall in love with it!”

I grabbed one of the cushions from the recliner and thwacked him with it across the shoulder just as he curled away. “You’re just jealous I ended up with a partner first. Man, does that feel so weird to say,” I countered before slumping down next to him on the couch with a sigh. “You shouldn’t be jealous of me at all. I’d have preferred to have gotten to know him first, like you and Sabine. I downright dreamed about courting someone or being courted by someone that way.”

“Hey, I mean, I admit the route you guys are going is a bit out of order,” Morgan countered. “But, you’ll still grow into the relationship. Lexus seems like a decent enough Alpha to compromise.”

“Yeah? Maybe the one that needs to learn to compromise is me,” I pointed out. “Mor there’s something I gotta tell ya, but I’m afraid to even say it out loud.”

I could see the chocolate Lab tense up at the sound of my voice. “Afraid to tell me? But, we’re besties!”

I let out a snort. “You might change your opinion after what I have to say.” I responded. “Morgan, I…I think that I’m able to hear some of Lex’s thoughts. Like in my mind, as if he were saying the words out loud.”

“…” Morgan was silent for a bit. “Dude, I know there was that one time that we skipped one of the annual sex-ed classes. But, I don’t ever remember anything that said that Omegas could read minds. Can you read mine? What am I thinking of right now?”

I shook my head. “No, I can’t. So far, it’s just Lexus’s thoughts.”

“Oh, you weren’t missing out on much, then,” Morgan admitted. “I was just thinking about you letting me pet your Yorkie form.”

I couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re so silly. As if you can’t just ask me that,” I added as I shifted into my canine form and laid down next to him.

“Jeez, nothing about you is ever simple, is it?” Morgan mused aloud as he absentmindedly began to pet my head and back. “I don’t know if I’m feeling it secondhand cause we’re practically brothers, but now you’ve got me worrying.”

I didn’t respond since he wouldn’t have been able to understand my words while we were in two different forms. But I did let out a low whine and licked his fingers as if to apologize.

“Naw, man,” he replied. “It’s not your fault.”

The way that Morgan didn’t so much as doubt me and was even sympathetic of my recent development gave me a comfort I couldn’t really describe. The two of us had met at the bus stop our first year of high school. He introduced himself, eager to make a friend after having recently moved into the area. Morgan hadn’t given me any odd looks and hadn’t stared openly at my rare albinism-related features. Though we were another study in contrast, since his skin tone was a rich, deep brown, we became fast friends. I knew that I was very lucky to have him in my life.