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If there was one thing he could appreciate about being rich and the minority, were the things he could experience. He had only ever seen the Immersive Gear in ads on the big screens in the city and decided that Merrik was too stiff. A little bit of gaming wouldn’t hurt. He ordered Xander to get him one, ordered him to upgrade his ID chip to allow him to access the internet, got himself a new hoverboard that Cain had destroyed when he’d burned the shop down. And finally, ordered an entire wardrobe of expensive clothing. By the time Merrik returned to his room, he’d trashed the room with discarded plates of food, multiple screens of the internet floating around the room as though he had been searching randomly everything he could. Mounds of clothes were strewn around the room, over the back of the couch in the main living space, leading into the bedroom. He was currently balancing on his hoverboard as he used the Immersive. He was yelling at something in the game when suddenly his whole world tilted and he found himself hitting the floor painfully.

He ripped off the Gear and looked up at the Omega who was glaring down at him with unrestrained fury. 

“What the fuck is going on here?” He asked, red eyes burning.

August couldn’t even be shamed. The wine had gone through him fast, having never had alcohol before. His cheeks were flushed and his whole world was blurry. When he finally focused on Merrik, he couldn’t help but laugh. 

“Your room was so boring. I just made my stay here so much better.”

“Are you drunk?!” Merrik asked, his voice hitting a higher pitch.

Beside the Omega, the projected vision of Xander appeared at his side. He bowed his head. “Forgive me, Young Master. You didn’t specify what he couldn’t request.”

August stood up and stumbled. Merrik didn’t bother to help him. The ridiculousness of this situation and the imminent danger he had put himself in had a bubbling of hysterical laughter escaping him. “I’m trapped here! What else am I supposed to do? You want me to wait for you at the door like a puppy, my tail wagging?”

The flush that erupted across Merrk’s face had August pausing in surprise. He had expected a backlash of anger from his response. Xander had enough sense to bow gently and excuse himself, his bluish white projecting immediately disappearing. 

His inner Alpha, excited that he had his walls down thanks to the wine, rose up and he let out his pheromones. “Would you like that? Do you want me to drop to my knees and beg for your attention?” 

Merrik looked intensely uncomfortable but not because August creeped him out. The truth of his feelings was evident against his pants. The body never lied. 

He took a step towards Merrik, only partially aware of what he was doing. “Your smell was everywhere, I had to figure out something to drown it out. You know, I’ve never experienced an Omega before.”

The fear he had seen for only a second on Merrik’s face when he had put his collar on was now open on his face. He didn’t even try to hide it. Merrik took a step back, only to find that he couldn’t. His back painfully hit the archway. His breath hitched as August closed the space between them. 

August could feel his heart pounding and it was so tempting to just lean in and press his nose to his scent gland, to become addicted to the scent he found there. His hands were just reaching for him when he felt a solid hit to his face and, because he was ridiculously drunk, he found himself hitting the floor, knocked into sobriety. He immediately looked up at Merrik who had clearly just punched him in the face. “Clean up this fucking mess!” He hissed before storming from the room.

August grinned. Merrik looked really cute when he was flustered and trying to be mad. Setting aside the fact that the other was an Infected, his mind was far away from that. Here, in this room, he couldn’t smell the powerful Infected stench; just Merrik’s sweet scent.  With a sigh, he laid back onto the floor. The world was still spinning and he still felt warm but the Omega’s scent was comfortable enough that he was able to close his eyes.