The cafe was back to normal, and so was Mason for the most part. It had been a week since they'd reopened, and even though nothing in the cafe had changed, Mason felt brand new.
Maybe it was the new, relaxed feeling that overcame him now that Terrance did his work from the cafe, or it could've had something to do with the box of clothes that Terrance brought him so he could stay more relaxed.
Mason had also become accustomed to Terrance staying with him at night, since most nights they would do their work, clean up the cafe together, and by the time they got dinner Mason would claim it was too late for Terrance to walk the one mile to his home and tell him to stay the night.
Terrance had no issues complying.
Despite the new feeling of peace, Mason always had Ezra's words living in the back of his mind. If what he said was true, Mason had about a week of freedom until he'd be stuck watching his back and waiting for Ezra to jump out of an alley and take him. It didn't bring him any relief that Ezra didn't know where his cafe was, because if there was one thing Ezra was, it was resourceful.
He'd be able to find Mason in a matter of minutes with all of the connections he had.
The thought of it was eating at Mason's mind when he handed a woman her coffee.
"Um, I hate to be a bother, but I ordered my drink iced," she said, looking at the hot coffee she'd been handed.
Mason shook his head to snap out of his daze. "Oh, sorry about that," he said, quickly fixing the drink and handing it to her. "Have a nice day."
Once she left, Mason sighed and continued making drinks, making sure to follow the instructions on the cups. He was almost to his break when a heavy Alpha scent filled his nose and Terrance showed up with a cheeky smile and handed him a note.
"What's this?" Mason asked, yawning. "I'm too tired to read."
Terrance's smile didn't falter. "Well wake up! I'm in pre-rut for a few more days before the real thing starts and I want to hang out with you as much as I can in advance!" he exclaimed.
Mason sighed, taking the note. "Is that the explanation for the heavy scent?"
"Yep!"
"And the overly energetic attitude?"
Terrance shrugged at that. "You seem tired today so I'm making up for your usual insane attitude. And I can't spend the night tonight," he said, making Mason snap to attention.
"Why not?!" Mason asked, almost spilling the coffee he was pouring in a to-go cup.
"Your heat started early because of me and I have this irrational fear that my rut will start early because I'm around you," Terrance said, biting his lip. "I don't want my wolf to overwhelm me and make a mistake."
Mason grumbled as he handed another customer their sandwich and drink. "But I can't sleep alone," he whined, putting milk away in the fridge under the bar. "And Henry's rut started two days ago so I can't ask him to come over!"
Terrance shot him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry," he said, before stepping back. "Just read what I sent you and meet me during your break."
Mason gave him a hum of agreement before getting back to work. As soon as his one hour break started, he made sure that Lucille was good running the ship for an hour while he met up with Terrance. He also realized he should probably hire another person so there's always two people there, especially on the weekends when they didn't get breaks because one person couldn't run the whole place.
Lucille grinned at her boss as he took off his apron to take his break. "Take as much time as you need, boss! He's been planning this all week!" she said cheerfully.
Confused but excited, Mason opened the letter.
Mason,
Go down the alley on seventh street and to the left between the sports store and sushi restaurant.
Your next clue is there <3
Terrance was such a dork, but Mason found that he loved that about his mate. The Alphas that Mason knew growing up would never be caught doing a scavenger hunt for their mates; in fact, Mason was sure that the Alphas he knew growing up wouldn't ever let their mates outside on their own.
He liked that Terrance cared but wasn't obsessive and overwhelming. Mason could confidently say that Terrance actually cared for his health by not being overprotective and acting like he was helpless.
And Mason loved it.
Walking down the street and following the steps on the note, Mason found the second clue quickly. It was taped on the sushi restaurant door and as soon as Mason grabbed it, the door opened to reveal a young woman with dark skin and a long braid down her shoulder.
Mason read the note, which instructed him to go inside the restaurant, and the girl lead him to a table. He didn't see Terrance anywhere.
"He's not here," the girl said, handing him a picnic basket with another note and two bubble teas. One was a mango tea that had lychee jelly at the bottom, while the other was a milk tea with coffee jelly. "But your next clue is right there in the basket!"
Thanking her, Mason opened the note and read it aloud, since the girl seemed eager to know what it said.
Mason,
Go to your "favorite" place to eat! Your next clue will be there along with another thing for your basket!
See you soon! <3
"Where do I like to eat?" Mason mumbled, trying to make remember where he and Terrance had gone before it hit him.
A week earlier Mason had been complaining about how much he hated Mexican food, so Terrance dragged him to his favorite Mexican food cart downtown and Mason discovered that he actually loved tacos and taquitos more than he'd admit.
As he approached the food cart, Mason saw his next clue and grabbed the note from the cart while the man working in the cart handed him a bag of food to put into his basket.
His next letter lead him to a flower shop where a bouquet of pink tulips, tiny white flowers, and aromatic lavender. Then, he got the last note which guided him to a secluded rose garden that was covered by tall trees and very few people knew about it.
If not for the map that Terrance had with the last note, Mason would've never found it.
When he got into the center of the empty garden, he found a blanket laid out with Terrance sitting on it, waiting patiently for Mason.
When Terrance locked eyes with his mate, a smile spread on his face and he stood up to meet with his mate. He took the basket and flowers in one arm before grabbing Mason's hand and leading him to the blanket.
"What's all of this?" Mason asked, blushing.
He knew a lot of thought must've gone in to setting up the entire scavenger hunt and paying for everything in advance just to show Mason he cared.
Terrance pulled the food and teas out. "Oh, I just set this up so I could get lunch and wait here for it," he said playfully.
Mason rolled his eyes lovingly. "Wow, you're so smart. Writing letters, paying in advance, interacting with all of those people just so I could bring you the food," he said, taking one of the meat tacos and cringing at the sight of his mate's seafood taco. "And that could kill me."
Terrance threw him a box. "Nope," he said. "I got you Benadryl just in case."
"Adorable," Mason said, digging into his food and moaning at the flavor. "Why did you set this all up, though?"
"Just to show how much I appreciate you. Plus, you're really smart so I knew you'd have fun figuring it out," he responded, stabbing his straw into his drink. "Do you like it? Was it too much?"
Mason shook his head. "No! This was... incredible," he said, admirably looking at his mate. "No one's ever cared about me like this. I mean, Henry does, but he's my friend not my boyfriend."
Terrance gaped at his mate. "Boyfriend?"
"Um, I mean-"
"Please don't say you take it back!" Terrance said, covering Mason's mouth with his hand. "I'm totally cool with boyfriends!"
Mason pulled Terrance's hand away from his mouth. "Really?"
"I think it's a good place to be, especially since we're not mated and it gives us time to get to know each other," Terrance said as Mason launched himself into the Alpha's lap to kiss him.
However, as soon as their kiss broke, Mason suddenly felt nervous and skittish. He glanced up and saw that Terrance's eyes had gone dark, his pupils dilated.
"Shit," Mason whispered, knowing that Terrance was falling into his rut. "Terrance, snap out of it."
Terrance began to breath heavily, his eyes brightening before darkening again. He was clearly fighting his instincts, gripping Mason tightly, as if he'd vanish if he let go.
"Mason," Terrance said, trying to get a grip on reality. "Wh-What do I do?"
Mason climbed out of Terrance's lap, knowing he needed help. He grabbed Terrance's phone and looked at his text messages, trying to find the infamous best friend that Mason had never met.
"What's your best friend's name?" Mason asked, holding Terrance's hand to try to soothe him.
"Kanae," Terrance said, closing his eyes to try to stay calm. "T-Tell her to meet at m-my apartment."
Mason obeyed and called Kanae, and she agreed to be there. He gathered their basket and wrapped Terrance in the blanket despite the heat outside, knowing their shared scent on it would cover the rut smell so people on the streets wouldn't be intimidated or get possessive.
It was considered rude to walk the streets as an Alpha in rut, since it intimidated Betas and Omegas, whereas it made other Alphas feel threatened and attempt to pick fights.
They got back to Terrance's apartment, and Kanae was waiting at the door. She turned Mason away when he tried to follow, saying it was dangerous for him since they were mates but hadn't marked each other.
"That's not fair!" Mason growled, feeling like he needed to support and care for Terrance. "He needs me!"
Kanae stopped him. "Not right now. He'll feel terrible if he accidentally forced you into something."
Mason glared. "I've been around Alphas in rut before," he muttered. "It doesn't hurt that bad."
"Other Alphas don't care the same way about you," Kanae scolded. "I'm not letting my friend experience the guilt and shame behind hurting his mate when it can be avoided."
Reluctantly, Mason turned around. "I'll bring some shirts and stuff for him."
Kanae nodded and gave a tight smile. "I'll be staying here so don't try to sneak in."
Mason flipped her off.
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