Allen had always been something of a night owl. He'd squeezed in a nap before dinner, which made him feel immensely better. Now though, when everyone was supposed to retire for the night, he felt restless.
Not to mention the annoying urge for a cigarette, which continued to linger in the back of his mind. They hadn't exactly been told they couldn't leave their room. Maybe he could just go for a little walk. Hell, maybe there was a corner store in the palace no one had told him about.
He stepped out of his room and into the hallway, looking both ways. There was no one in sight, but he couldn't help feeling like he was doing something wrong.
He stuffed his hands into his basketball shorts as he started left, looking at the unreasonably ornate corridor. He wondered if the royal family had a fetish for boring paintings, ugly vases, and potted plants.
He turned the corner, getting ready to scoff at yet another massive painting of a pond when something crashed into him. He fell backward, with nothing to help break his fall because his hands were still in his pockets. The carpet cushioned him a bit, but his ass was going to hurt for a few days.
He groaned and sat up, assessing the damage. The guy next to him seemed in worse shape. He was sobbing, face covered by his arms. The man made no attempt to move.
"Uh, you good?" Allen asked as he stood up, he leaned down and offered a hand to the crying person. He didn't think the fall had been too serious."Are you hurt badly?"
The man took a moment, taking a deep breath before removing his arms to peer up at Allen. Suddenly, he was looking at a red, splotchy face and puffy green eyes he recognized. His jaw dropped a bit.
"Oh. King Scott?" He asked stupidly, resisting the urge to reach down and pull him up anyway. He knew his instincts to protect a distressed Omega were kicking in.
The King hiccupped, reaching out for his hand. Allen hauled him up without saying anything. He was suddenly aware of Scott's half unbuttoned shirt and was trying not to stare at his exposed chest.
"Well, this is embarrassing." The Omega sniffled, with a small, humorless laugh. He didn't seem to care that he was somewhat undressed. "I apologize for run-"
He stopped abruptly, standing stock still. Allen found himself doing the same thing, and his ears picked up on a voice in the next corridor. He couldn't make out what the deep voice was saying. Suddenly, Scott was pushing him toward the suitor's rooms.
"Which one is yours?" He whispered urgently, trying to urge Allen along.
Allen lamely pointed towards his door, trying to figure out what was happening. Scott must have recognized the voice. Why did he seem so nervous about it though?
Scott opened his door and motioned for him to come inside. "Hurry up!" He hissed out, and Allen obeyed. Scott locked the door behind them.
Suddenly, they were alone in his room. An unclaimed Omega, who happened to be his King was standing in his room, half undressed. For a moment he wondered if he was dreaming. He even pinched himself. Nope, not dreaming.
"Uhm, what exactly is going on?" He asked.
His head whipped around, bright green eyes glaring into him. He brought his finger up to his lips in a silent command to shut up. His hand was trembling.
Scott turned to look towards the door again. Allen stayed quiet, wondering what the Omega was so afraid of. Allen could practically feel the anxiety radiating off of him.
After what seemed like an eternity, Scott visibly relaxed and he glanced over at Allen. "I apologize for being so rude. I'm just avoiding someone at the moment."
"Why are you scared of them?" He asked bluntly before trying to explain himself. "I can smell it on you."
Scott rolled his eyes. "It's not exactly them I'm afraid of." He brought up a crumpled piece of paper that he must've been holding the entire time. Allen had been too distracted by other things to even notice it.
"I'm confused." He admitted, and Scott just handed the paper over to him. He smoothed it out and what he saw made his cheeks heat up. He had never really imagined the King having a personal life. "Why are you showing me this? Is this really you?"
"You'd find out tomorrow anyway. Unfortunately it is me. It's from a few months ago, so they must've been holding onto the image for a while." Scott chuckled darkly, "Don't look so surprised Allen."
He couldn't help but feel that way, as he looked down at the tabloid cover once more before looking at Scott. He had his arms crossed over his chest, but one could tell he was still shaking. An uneasy look clouded his eyes, and his lips formed a small frown. He looked sad and hurt. Every instinct in him wanted to reach out and make all of his worries go away. In fact, he moved to do just that, to wrap his arms around Scott, but a small hand on his chest stopped him.
"Don't. I don't need to be comforted." Scott's frown was suddenly directed towards him. "How about we go for a walk?"
Allen nodded a bit, swallowing his disappointment. Why did he care anyway? "You should button up your shirt."
This seemed to amuse the King. He broke out in a small smile. "No." He said simply before turning and exiting the room.
Once they were out of the confines of his room, his head cleared a bit. They walked in silence for a few minutes.
"Was the person you're avoiding the man in the picture?" He asked.
Scott nodded a little. "Mhmmm. He's more than a little upset with me at the moment."
It made Allen wonder how much of this competition Scott had a say in. Had he wanted this at all? Maybe he had been in love with that man. Maybe he was going along with it because he had to.
"We're not seeing each other anymore. He's ah, promised to someone else now." Scott cleared his throat, looking pretty sad about that.
Allen raised his eyebrows. "Not made for the crown, huh?"
"He'd have made a great partner, perhaps, but not a ruler, no." He ran his hands through his dark curls, "I'm hoping this competition will help me move on."
"So you did want this competition to happen?"
"Does it seem like I don't?"
Allen shrugged. "I wasn't sure."
"Well it's certainly not the most ideal way to find a mate. But it does give me a choice, which is more than most royalty get." Scott glanced over at him. "Why'd you enter in this if you thought it was forced?"
"I didn't think I'd get picked. I mainly did it to appease my family." Allen looked down, suddenly interested in his shoes.
Scott furrowed his brows. "You can go home if you'd like. You're in University right? It would probably be difficult to do your classes online."
"I don't know. I don't think I want to." Allen mumbled hesitantly.
"What makes you want to stay?"
"Well the food is great. Plus, my mom would kill me if I got sent home so early. And you're...not at all what I was expecting."
Scott snorted. "What does that mean?"
"I don't know. I just expected you to be more like a robot." Allen answered honestly.
Scott burst into laughter which made Allen's cheeks heat up in embarrassment. He probably shouldn't have said that. "I don't think I've ever had someone speak with me so brazenly."
Allen didn't quite know what to say. He didn't want to embarrass himself further.
"Thank you for cheering me up, Allen." His green eyes were glittering in amusement, plump lips curved upwards in a gentle smile.
Allen's chest tightened painfully. He reminded him so much of his ex it hurt.
"How about I walk you to your room, it's getting late?"
"That would be nice."
Comments (5)
See all