As it turned out, “later” did not actually come until Wednesday afternoon. 

Between transitioning his administrative duties to Thomas and keeping up with his regular appointments, Dante ended up being far busier than he had anticipated. He occasionally caught distant glimpses of Raf as he rushed hurriedly from one place to another; but when he searched for him during one of his brief windows of downtime, the Alpha was nowhere to be found. 

Tuesday was likewise a no-go, this time because it was a class day for Raf and he had no shifts scheduled. Dante knew he was in no position to complain about it, especially since Raf’s school schedule had been approved well in advance. Even so, the delay irked him. In fact, the longer it went on, the more jittery and frustrated he became. 

By Wednesday morning, Dante was in such a foul mood that it was all he could do to keep himself from collaring Raf and dragging him into an empty office the moment he arrived, and had he not been scheduled for back-to-back appointments all morning, he seriously might have given in to the impulse.

The moment that his final patient had left the room, Dante whipped out his phone to message Raf. He opened up the app, only to discover that he already had several texts waiting for him.

Dante hurried directly over to the courtyard, and arrived with several minutes to spare. Since it was lunchtime, the area was mercifully empty of other occupants. Dante seated himself on the bench in the center of the room and nervously tapped his foot. He took in a few deep breaths of the scented air, trying in vain to calm himself down. It wouldn’t do either of them any good if he started out their conversation already worked up.

I’m okay. Don’t panic. Everything will be okay. 

The door to the room opened and Dante’s head shot up. Raf stood framed in the doorway. He caught Dante’s eye and made to step into the room but then hesitated, as if unsure whether it was okay for him to enter. Dante rose from the bench, and held up his hand in an awkward wave.

“Ah. Hey there.”

“Hey.”

They regarded each other carefully from across the room. Dante took a moment to study Raf’s face and body language, trying to get a sense of the Alpha’s mood. As far as he could tell, Raf didn’t seem angry or upset, just tense and a little bit wary. He continued to linger in the doorway, clearly waiting for Dante to make the first move.

Dante took a deep breath, then flashed a tentative smile. “Do you want to come in?” he asked.

Raf nodded, and walked slowly over to the bench. The two sat down next to each other, though Dante noticed that Raf was careful to leave a little bit of extra space between them. They stared at the fountain in silence, unsure of how to begin. Dante finally cracked first.

“Well, this is awkward,” he said, with another half-hearted attempt at a smile.

Raf chuckled mirthlessly. “Yep.”

Another moment of silence, and then both spoke simultaneously.

“I wanted to apologize--”

“Hey, I’m really sorry for--”

They stopped, then as if on cue, they both started to laugh, instantly breaking the built-up tension. Dante snorted and shook his head. “Well, I feel like an idiot,” he said with a grin.

“You and me both.” Raf’s smile was shy but it at least seemed genuine. He gave Dante a light nudge with his elbow. “You go first.”

“Right…” Dante chewed on his lip, unsure where to begin. “I’m...well...I just wanted to tell you that…” He waved his hands helplessly in front of his face as he tried to piece together what he wanted to say. Damn it, why is this so difficult?

“I'm just...I’m so fucking sorry,” he finally blurted out. Raf looked up at him wide-eyed, clearly startled to hear him swearing. 

“I shouldn’t have left you that night, and I shouldn’t have ignored your messages,” Dante pushed on. “I was just so shaken and hurt after meeting Alexei, and I honestly didn’t know what to do.” He groaned and put his face in his hands. “I really, really hate that you had to see me like that.”

“Ah...yeah, I can understand that part,” Raf said, carefully folding his own hands in front of him. “Given the circumstances, I guess it’s not surprising that you’d be upset. I mean, I don’t really know what happened between the two of you, but it was pretty obvious that he hurt you.”

“That’s an understatement,” Dante said grimly, lowering his hands but keeping his face averted. 

“Can I-- Can I ask who he was, to you?” Raf asked hesitantly. He flushed, then quickly added, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to.”

“No, it’s okay. He is...well, he was...my mate.” Dante heard Raf take in a sharp breath, but pressed on. “We aren’t together anymore, obviously, but we’re still bonded. Seeing him like that, especially without any kind of warning... well, my whole body just flooded with adrenaline. I couldn’t decide whether I wanted to kiss him or kill him where he stood. The contradiction felt like it was literally tearing me apart.”

“You did look like you were in a lot of pain,” Raf observed quietly.

“I was,” Dante admitted. “That’s what the bond does to Omegas, when their mates reject them.”

Raf looked stricken. “I had no idea.”

“Yeah, it’s....not really something they teach in schools.” Dante scowled. “Whenever the topic of claim bonds comes up in Sex Ed, teachers usually only talk about the good parts, like the way an Omega’s body gets flooded with Oxytocin after the bite, making them feel more connected to their partner.”

“Or the way partners become closely attuned to each other’s scents and moods,” Raf added. “I remember getting that lecture in class, too.”

“Right,” Dante nodded. “But they don’t ever talk about what happens when bonds fail. That’s something I had to learn for myself the hard way. Suffice to say, it isn’t pretty.”

Raf didn’t respond, but he reached over and lightly placed his fingers on top of Dante’s and gave them a soft squeeze. “I’m so sorry that happened to you.”

“Yeah, thanks.” Dante bit his lip and looked down at Raf’s hand, then up into his eyes. The Alpha’s expression was soft and full of compassion. Dante flinched and turned away, pulling his hand out of Raf’s grasp and onto his lap. “I don’t want to be pitied, though,” he added quickly. “That’s a big part of why I don’t usually like to talk about all this. I hate being pitied.”

Raf tilted his head to the side, studying Dante curiously. “Do you think I pity you?”

Dante turned back to look at him again, raising an eyebrow. “Don’t you?”

“I guess?” Raf shrugged lightly and looked down at his feet. “I mean, I’m really sorry that this happened to you. You have no fucking idea how much. That guy is obviously a complete asshole, and I hate that he caused you so much pain.” He looked back up at Dante. “But it doesn’t really change how I view you, if that’s what you’re worried about. If anything, I think you must be really strong, to have survived something like that. If I were in your shoes, I think I would have been a complete wreck.”

“I was, for a while,” Dante said quietly, his gaze distant as his eyes fell upon the fountain in front of them. “It actually took me a very long time to pull myself back together after it happened. I almost wasn’t able to get my degree. I remember being constantly surrounded by people who seemed like they were just waiting for me to fall apart and drop out of school. As far as they were concerned, a sad little Omega like me, who got my heart stomped on and then got ditched by his Alpha, was never going to amount to anything. I wanted so badly to prove them wrong, but...it was also so hard not to let those judgments get to me. I was barely keeping it together as it was, most of the time. I felt really pathetic.”

“Didn’t you have anyone to support you?” Raf asked. “Like your parents, or close friends?”

Dante shrugged. “My parents didn’t want anything to do with me after high school, although my grandparents did try to help me out for a while. And then, of course, there was Thomas.”

Raf’s shoulders tensed slightly, and he suddenly seemed very interested in looking anywhere but at Dante. “Oh, you mean the Director?” he asked. “Yeah, um, I heard you guys were close.”

Dante nodded. “I met him shortly after I graduated. He’s been a good friend to me these past few years.”

“Was he…?” Raf started, then stopped himself and frowned.

Dante raised an eyebrow at him. “Was he what?”

Raf’s mouth twitched. He seemed to battle with himself for a moment, then finally forced the words out. “Was he the one you stayed with that night?”

“Hm?” Dante was confused. “What do you mean?”

“After you left, you sent a message saying that you were ‘staying with a friend’. Was it him?”

“Oh...yeah,” Dante said slowly. “He’s pretty much the only other person who knows anything about me and Alexei, and I knew he wouldn’t mind coming to get me, so I called him.”

Raf gritted his teeth but said nothing. They sat in tense silence for a few moments, until Raf finally mumbled something so quietly that Dante couldn’t quite make out the words.

“Sorry? I couldn’t hear you.”

“I said, why did it have to be him?” Raf looked up at him abruptly, and Dante was startled to see the hurt and confusion clouding the normally warm brown eyes. “I mean, I was already there. I could have come and got you! Why did you have to call him instead?”

Dante pulled back in surprise. “I...I mean, I--”

“It’s because you don’t trust me, right?” Raf said, his voice strained. “It’s not like I blame you. I know I’m not a mature adult like Thomas is, but I could have… I wanted to…” He cut himself off and shook his head angrily.

Something finally clicked in Dante’s head. “Is this why you didn’t respond to me for a week?” he asked quietly. “Because you were mad that I asked him for help, and not you?”

Raf said nothing, but the flush on his cheeks was answer enough. 

Dante looked down at his hands. “I’m sorry,” he said softly. “It’s not that I don’t think you’re trustworthy. I was actually really grateful that you were there with me when Alexei appeared. But, I also didn’t want you to see me like that. It was...really embarrassing, showing all the worst parts of myself in front of you, especially since we still don’t know each other all that well, and I’m also technically your boss, and…” He knew he was rambling, so he forcibly stopped himself, and started again.

“I’m sorry I hurt you. Really, Raf.”

Raf scrunched up his face, and Dante suspected he was trying not to cry. 

“It’s...okay,” he said finally, his voice cracking a bit. “I mean, I don’t like it, but I understand. It’s not like we’ve been friends for that long. I’m sorry I reacted like such a brat.” He sniffled surreptitiously. “I guess I really am unreliable after all.”

“You aren’t!” Dante surprised even himself with the forcefulness of the statement. Raf’s eyes widened. “You have to believe me when I say you aren’t unreliable, Raf,” Dante continued in a low, urgent voice. “Far from it. From the moment you started here, you have done nothing but work to help and protect the people around you. I know it; Christina definitely knows it. Hell, half the Omegas at the Center can vouch for it! You’ve shown everyone many times over that you are someone who can be trusted.”

He twisted his hands on his lap. “That night, it really wasn’t about that, or even about you at all. I’m just...not the best at trusting people. It’s something I’ve struggled with for a long time.” 

He reached over and took Raf’s hand in both of his. “Listen,” he said. “I know I’m not always the easiest person to deal with, but please believe me when I say that I want to be able to trust you, and to rely on you when I need help. It just might take me some time.” He glanced up nervously, trying to gauge Raf’s reaction. “Would that be okay with you? At least for now?”

Raf looked down at his hand, which was still clasped in both of Dante’s. Slowly, he turned it over and brushed his thumb softly along Dante’s knuckles. Dante had to suppress a slight shiver that ran through him.

“Yeah, it’s okay,” Raf said quietly, keeping his eyes fixed on their hands as he continued to move his thumb back and forth. “I’ll keep on working to earn your trust, and I’ll try to be patient, and whenever you need me,” he finally looked up and met Dante’s eyes, “I’ll be here.”

Another shiver swept through Dante at the solemn intensity in Raf’s expression. His cheeks reddened. He knew he should say something back, but for some reason, he couldn’t think of a response. Or maybe he just didn’t want to. So instead, they sat simply there, hands intertwined, basking in a mutual sense of calm that no words were required to express.

The moment was finally interrupted when Dante’s phone buzzed. He pulled his hands away from Raf’s and unlocked the device. A new notification indicated that a message had just come in from Miguel.

“Oh no,” he murmured.

“What’s up?” Raf asked. “Is everything okay?”

Dante shook his head. “No. It sounds like we have a security situation. I need to go meet Miguel right away and see what’s going on.” He turned to Raf. “Actually, you’d better come too. Just in case.”

Raf nodded, and they both hurried out of the courtyard and down the corridor. On the way, Dante’s phone started to ring.

“Yes, Thomas?” he asked as soon as he picked up. “Is this about Miguel’s text? I’m already on my way to the security suite. I have Raf with me as well.”

“Good, glad to hear it.” Thomas’s voice over the phone sounded strained. “We’ll probably need both of you.”

“Is it another Code Blue?” Dante asked.

“Worse,” Thomas said. “I just got off the phone with the police, and it looks like we’re going to have to evacuate everyone from the building, ASAP.”

“What? Why?” Dante rounded the final corner and threw open the door to the security suite. Thomas and Miguel looked up at him in unison, and then Thomas hit the “Disconnect” button on his phone and lowered it to his side. His expression was grim.

“Because,” he said, “there’s been a bomb threat to the Center.”