Kaiden discovers that Damon didn’t leave when the Alpha shortly returns as he is clearing the table. The old butler told him that he doesn’t need to do any housework—he’s more of a guest than a servant, but it feels wrong for him to be idle. He has to keep his body moving if he wants to empty his mind of foolish thoughts—thoughts about his budding affection for his fated mate, so he does his best at putting away the plates even though he’s unfamiliar with the kitchen layout.

When Damon sees him being a busy bee, he frowns but doesn’t comment on it. Instead, the Alpha orders, “Take a shower and meet me in my room in one hour.”

He then makes his way upstairs, leaving the Omega all flush and hot upon realizing what’s about to happen. The heart that Kaiden worked so hard to calm down beats loudly again in both anticipation and nervousness.

Kaiden scrambles to his own room, his feet barely touching the stairs in his flurry. He makes haste to the adjacent bathroom as he locks the door behind him with trembling fingers.

His bathroom is as big as his old apartment, the shower separated with frosted glass for privacy and the bathtub large enough for two adults to lie down side by side. The white tiles are heated to combat the autumn chill and the sink holds skincare products he never heard of before.

However, Kaiden doesn’t notice any of this, all of his attention on his reflection at the circular mirror. He brings his hands to cup his pink cheeks, forcing them to return to normal with sheer willpower. His carmine eyes are blown wide, the dilated pupils doing nothing to hide his arousal—if only the pheromones he has been unconsciously releasing aren’t already giving it away.

He takes several deep breaths, choosing to ignore how even his neck has a red tinge.

Has he always been this easily aroused? How can the words ‘meet me in my room in one hour’ elicit such a reaction from him?

He swears he wasn’t like this before. Maybe the steak was cooked with wine; he has a low tolerance for alcohol after all. Well, it’s not that he knows since he never had a drop before, not even when he was working at the nightclub, but that’s the excuse Kaiden tells himself.

If not, how is he going to accept the fact that something is hardening in his lower body when he’s nothing but an Omega virgin?

He may just die from shame at this point, so before that happens, he quickly removes his clothes, pretending that there isn’t a wet patch of slick in his underwear. He hops inside the shower and douses in cold water. The low temperature does its job, pushing away thoughts that are not appropriate for minors. He scrubs every inch of himself clean until his skin is raw and red before soaking himself in an almost too hot bath. Kaiden adds a lavender bath bomb to the water, hoping that it will somehow mask his own sweet strawberry scent.

Even ten minutes later, when his eyelids are heavy from drowsiness, he remains unaware of the mistake in his decision.

--

Kaiden feels like he’s floating. His body is light and it feels warm everywhere. It’s as if he is in the clouds and when he looks down, he realizes that he is somewhere high up. With a bird’s view of the city, the night lights are as bright as the stars around him.

He looks to his left and sees a plane flying in the distance. The engine is surprisingly loud even from far away.

Kaiden tries to move his weightless body closer to the mechanical bird out of curiosity, but instead of moving west, he is suddenly being pulled down.

He flails his limbs in panic, knowing that falling from this height will surely kill him.

Just as his body is about to touch the ground, the scene changes.

He’s in a dining room, sitting in a chair way too big for him, but he can’t see anything past the edge of the table that goes above his nose. Someone calls for him to eat his meal but he can’t—he can’t, his arms are too short, the spoon is too big and heavy. What is happening? Where is he? Why are they shouting?

Someone calls for him, calls him ‘young master’, and pushes the chair closer to the table. His body jolts with the sudden movement, making his tiny hands grip the side of the seat. He hears more yelling but he doesn’t know where it’s coming from. He can’t see, it’s too dark, and he’s too small. Why is it so dark?

There are loud noises everywhere, like plates being moved around, and Kaiden can’t help but panic. Are they taking his food away? They can’t, he hasn’t eaten yet. Is he not going to have dinner again?

Someone is still shouting, calling him useless, telling him to stop being so weak. He looks up and sees big, big hands looming over him. It reaches for his neck, squeezing the air out of him.

It hurts. He can’t breathe. He tries to shout for someone … anyone to please help him, but he can’t. Nothing is coming out.

Ash-grey hair falls on his sight as he tries to pry the grip on his throat. It’s her. It’s always her. Why is she doing this again?

He chokes and he gasps as the face hidden in the dark mumbles something. He can’t hear it but the words are familiar, the lips moving in the same manner as he has watched a thousand times before.

“Poor Kaiden,” she mouths, “if only you died that day, wouldn’t it be better?”

He tries to say no, to fight back, but he’s weak, small …  pathetic. It hurts. When will she let go? He’s dying.

Someone’s calling for him again. He kicks with all his strength and with a start, his eyes snap open.

His chest is heaving up and down, white-knuckled hands clinging to the edge of the tub. The now cold water sloshes around him as he pushes himself upwards on wrinkled fingers.

How long was he out for?

A knock comes from the door, Uriel’s muffled voice on the other side saying, “Young Master Kaiden, Master Damon asked for you.”

Kaiden cringes at the title, the nightmare still vivid in his mind, as he replies, “I’ll be out in a minute.”

He makes quick of his promise, drying himself and putting the cotton robe on as fast as possible. Hovering a hand over the clothes that he prepared beforehand, he hesitates on whether to put them on or not. He knows why he’s being called but will be walking out with almost nothing on make him seem too eager?

Another knock on the door ends his contemplation, making him grab his underwear and put it in a hurry.

This is enough, right?

Leaving the room, he is greeted by the smiling butler who then leads him to Damon’s room.

Kaiden mumbles a soft ‘thank you’ before grabbing the door handle, the beating of his heart once more loud in his ears.