The sound of awe-struck laughter resounded in the free weight area of the gym.

The source was from two dark-haired men standing by the bench where their friend laid, bench pressing about double his weight.They observed in amusement as a grunt snuck it’s way from the back of the man’s throat. He lifted the weight as far as his arms would extend for the last time; it was his tenth rep. The weight shook in his firm grip for the small moment he held it there, then he lowered it down back onto its stand. Unaware of the breath he was holding, he released it and sat up. Wiping his dark, unruly bangs from his sweat moistened forehead ,he gave his two friends a toothy smile.

“See? I told you I could do it. Now pay up Hunter.” His eyebrows wiggled as he looked to the man on his right. Hunter was a cocoa-skinned Beta who currently held a disgruntled frown as he fished around in his duffel bag for money.

“Alright, Alright. You proved me wrong.Let this be a lesson to not question your strength again.”

Hunter puffed his cheeks in a huff as he forked over a twenty dollar bill. He thought for sure he would win this bet, but how could he have known the other was capable of lifting that much, especially when the three of them had started weightlifting at the same time; at the same weight. Now he didn’t even have enough money to get their usual recovery protein shakes at the drink bar,and the new mint chocolate flavor was calling his name too. The other Beta male,slightly smaller than Hunter and fair skinned, chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.

“You should’ve known better dude. Aosh is an Alpha. ‘Alpha’s always win’ as they say.”

“Shut up,Marcus.” Hunter countered at the others’ snide remark. Marcus smirked in the others face, clearly not intimidated by him.

Aosh laughed at them both as he got up from the bench,grabbing his water bottle off the floor next to it. Coming just short of Hunter’s height, Aosh had well defined muscles that showed through a tight training top and a petite waist under his baggy joggers.His black locks were tamed only by a simple hair tie,holding it in place with a high ponytail.The only thing giving way to how unruly it was were the bangs that swept to one side.Using the towel around his neck, he continued to wipe sweat from his honey-colored face, running it over where delicate peonies were etched on his cheeks. At first one would assume he was delinquent in character looking the way he did, but those obsidian eyes let off a gentle warmness; his smile was attractive and alluring.Regarding Marcus, he turned to the man to make a comment.

“You know that saying doesn’t mean shit, man. Hunter can usually match me in what he lifts and he’s a Beta. Gender isn’t everything ya’ know.” He patted Marcus on the back as he took a few gulps of water between his parted lips.

“Mmm…sure.” the other mumbled under his breath, shrugging off the hand.

“C’mon guys. The winner has to get his shake! Mm, I’m thinking mint chocolate.” The Alpha gestured for the two to follow him as he walked towards the drink bar.

“So you guys heard right?”

Aosh and Hunter looked at Marcus quizzically from across the table in the recreation lounge, both sipping on a protein shake. Aosh felt bad for Hunter losing and bought him a shake as a gesture of goodwill. The latter looked pleased finally having the new flavor he sought after, and was not disappointed in the least at the taste. Aosh on the other hand would’ve preferred the regular chocolate and it showed by how much he was actually drinking. Marcus rolled his eyes.

“The new section of the gym that they finished building a couple weeks ago is going to be a dance studio.”

The other males sucked at their straws in silence not really knowing why that news was relevant to them. Aosh and his friends didn’t dance, they weight trained with a little cardio sprinkled here and there to keep things balanced. Leaning in closer to the other two, Marcus whispered.

“Apparently one of the dance instructors is an Omega. An Omega male at that.”

“Dude, really?” Hunter grinned.

“Mhm. I’ve heard he’s really cute too. Ten out of ten.”

“Have you seen him?”

“Nah, it’s just what I’ve heard, but Omegas are always beautiful.” They turned to look at Aosh who continued to sip his shake in silence, looking away from the two.

“C’mon Aosh! You can’t tell me you’re not at least a little interested?!” Marcus looked at him incredulously.

“Marcus, you know-” Aosh started, exasperated, but was cut short by Marcus’ short temper.

“Yea, yea we’ve heard it before Aosh. ‘ I want to find my fated mate. Fate picked someone out for me so that’s who I want to be with. I want something meaningful not just a fling.’ Blah. Blah. Blah. Can you just act like a regular Alpha for a change and stop worrying about some name on your arm?” Marcus jabbed at the area where the name was scarred on Aosh’s left inner forearm for emphasis.

He pulled his arm close to him like he had been burnt and glared at his friend. The name there was Aosh’s most cherished possession since he was a child. Even when he was getting tattoos he painstakingly made sure it went untouched. Currently it was nestled between a few blooming lotus which was a recent addition to the ever growing sleeve of flora and koi.

The glare from the Alpha was intense and intimidating. As a Beta, Marcus knew at his core he shouldn’t push the other, Aosh’s gender was above his after all. Even so Marcus tried hard to make it look like Aosh wasn’t phasing him and turned to talk to Hunter instead who was unsurprisingly quiet during the whole exchange.He was never one to be confrontational, especially when Marcus got like this.

Aosh had heard it all before. How what he wanted didn’t make sense. That he was a waste of an Alpha for saving himself for one person that may or may not want him back; someone he didn’t even know. But Aosh liked to live by example in everything he did, and the best example of a relationship between fated mates was his own parents.

They loved each other and were happy with one another. Aosh wanted that. Growing up he saw what fate had done for them, how happy and oh so in love with each other they were, and wanted the same. He could admit he was a romantic,he was at least that self aware, and the whole idea of it all was so appealing to him.

When he was in his younger teenage years he would digest unhealthy amounts of romance novels that depicted tender love stories of deep yearning and affections that crossed genders and boundaries. Stories that made his heart squeeze and his breathing stutter at the mere thought that he could have that someday. Yes, Aosh was a romantic, and maybe a little deluded,but he yearned for the person this name scarred on him belonged to like nothing else in the world mattered; and it would take more than a few jabs from his friend for him to rethink his whole philosophy on his love life.

Hunter and Marcus’ current conversation became background noise as Aosh got lost in his thoughts; absentmindedly messing with his lip piercings between sips of his almost soupy shake.

After they showered and changed into their everyday wear, the trio made their way towards the exit. As they began to pass the new dance studio Marcus stopped at the window to peek inside.

“Psst! Guys look!” He motioned them over with his hand. 

The other two came over to see why he had gotten so excited. Inside the room were two people; a taller man with close cut tawny hair and a shorter, more slender man with striking platinum blonde hair that looked like it sparkled in the natural light of the room. Those dazzling locks came to rest just under his shoulders. The latter stood on the tips of his toes at the railing on the adjacent wall. A small sweet smile graced his lips as he gracefully moved his arms and swayed to the quiet music playing inside. The other male adjusted his position at the hips and arms. In a swift movement the slender man dropped down to the flat of his feet and extended one leg out.

“I bet the Omega is the blonde one, look how slim he is.” Hunter whispered.

“Look how flexible he is. Damn. Imagine that in bed. And that face. I think I’m in love guys.” Marcus had a lecherous grin on his face as he observed the two.

“You think they’re together?” Hunter questioned.

“Aw, don’t ruin this for me man. Besides look. The other guy has a ring on and the Omega doesn’t. Obviously he’s married.”

“Oh you’re right…”

As the other two continued to ogle the Omega from behind the window Aosh couldn’t shake this odd feeling he had in the pit of his stomach. His stomach felt like it was flipping inside of him as he looked at the two inside the room. When the light would catch the man’s face, the subtle blush there and the glint of his eyes, there was a rush of emotions inside he really didn’t understand. Confusion was the only word that came to mind as he searched his vocabulary to put a word to the feeling. He was disturbed by this empty feeling he got in the pit of his stomach, like he hadn’t eaten in days and his body was slowly eating itself from the inside. The Alpha tore his eyes away from the two, unsure of why he had been staring so long.

With the emptiness still there he turned to leave, mumbling a goodbye to the two still at the window. They must’ve put something weird in that shake.