The smell of alpha was spread across her sheets through the night, leaving an obscene scent scene by daylight. Anyone who entered her room would assume a night of passion had ensued. River felt a throb between her legs at the mere possibility of anyone thinking she and Elliott would… She shook her head against her pillows. New thoughts, please. Somehow, sharing the scent with her bedding hadn’t dimmed it on her own skin. Scent-marking, properly, on another person, affected their very glands, she remembered as she laid in a tangle of duvet. Secondary school biology that her brain had tossed aside when none of her crushes had gotten beyond the awkward dating stage. Her body would continue to hold Elliott’s unique scent profile until it ran its course - time would fade it only, no matter how much she scrubbed or sweated. At least this meant she wouldn’t lose it before bowling…

She peeled herself free of her blankets and plodded out to the shared bathroom on her floor to get washed up. Body aching from rolling around all night, and head sore from lack of sleep, she could only hope a shower would sort her out in time for her day to begin.

A mental health morning was the most she could spare, she decided as she brushed her teeth. Instead of working through her feelings of being doused in eau d'Elliott, she'd spent all night tossing and turning in worry about the fencing club. They only needed an hour of her time, she couldn't let them down. 

All she skipped was a single lecture in the end. Disrupting her sleep with guilt over what she would and wouldn’t bail out of only meant she spent her self-care time napping in between a face mask and some sketching. She tried not to let it feel like a waste.

She had a bundle of daffodils that had yet to open, they sat stubbornly in a thin glass vase atop her dresser. She drew them from a slew of angles and hoped to have more than buds to put to paper by the end of the week. Flowers were her favourite to paint, and she always made sure to have a bouquet in her room - even if it was just a couple of plucked stems gifted to her by the bee-keeping society. They had the most incredible smelling lavender.

Folding away her sketches, River gave the room a quick gloss-over with her eyes to check anything she might have forgotten to pack in her tote. Satisfied at the state of her cluttered space, she left for her afternoon lectures.

After all that fuss, the fencing competition had been postponed to Monday. River confirmed by text that she could make the updated date and time as she walked into the theatre. She needed to bring her focus back to the room if she was going to ignore the stares and note-passing for another two hours.

×

Post-lecture, River hurried to the baking society’s monthly bake-off. She had been asked to be part of the judging group by a classmate in her first year and had devoured more cake than she had fingers on a monthly basis ever since. They wanted as many judges as possible to make the competition fair, since none of them were experts, more taste-testers.

River mingled amongst her fellow paper plate carriers, exclaiming at every bite how good the treats were. The crowd of nibbling judges didn’t gather as closely to her this time, the protective scent of Elliott forcing them back. She didn’t feel any offence at their distance, and it didn’t stop her making new friends. She chatted happily with betas of both divisions, only closing her mouth to chew.

She ranked a victoria sponge cupcake with thick fresh cream first on her judging sheet, and a slightly dry shortbread last. After everyone handed in their sheets, and the winners were announced, River headed home for the evening with new names on the tip of her tongue.

×

Friday finally arrived the next morning, the day that her stinky situation had been set in motion for.

Bowling with the girls was the only extracurricular in her planner for the day, but she still had to get her classes out of the way. Two back-to-back morning sessions were separated by a short walk with a member of the art society in which she got roped into agreeing to a Pinot’n’painting night in a couple of weeks.

She had lunch at home: a sandwich and carrot sticks, while scurrying about her room trying to choose the best clothes to wear to a bowling alley. Poking clutter with her toe, she managed to make the room look slightly better - if a little more crumb-covered - by the time she was ready to leave.

A t-shirt painted with a variety of cacti completed her outfit for the afternoon, it hung loose over blue jeans that Savannah had embroidered with leaves for her (cosplay-creation skills were surprisingly transferable). She tied a portion of her hair up and let a selection of curly strands fall around her face, a dab of lip gloss threatened to catch them if the wind blew too hard.

She hopped down the stairs and out the door with her tote bag slapping her hip and took herself to the bus stop.

A half-hour ride later, and she was in a very different part of town. Not that any part of a uni town was without its faults… but the industrial estate that she alighted at set off alarm bells as soon as the bus doors shut behind her.

It was... rough. That was the only word for it. Broken bottles, cigarette butts, and half-melted plastic littered the pavement. River kept to the bare concrete with her trainers, knowing the flimsy rubber soles would not protect her feet from tetanus. The GPS on her phone claimed it was only a twelve minute walk from the bus stop, already it felt like too long with eyes on her from around corners or under railings. The watchers were dominants, no alphas, but more than capable of overpowering her, and showing far too much interest. She tried to keep her map-checking to a minimum to reduce the amount of time she spent looking down or holding her phone out. She didn't want her or the device snatched.

They leered, some whistled, and one called a dirty joke across the street - something about omega's slick that got a laugh out of those near him. It was hard not to rush, to stay calm and appear unbothered. Her heart was pounding painfully, a cold feeling leaking through the middle of her chest. They didn't come close, they wouldn't dare, no matter what they were inebriated with, she told herself. For all intents and purposes, she was an alpha's mate. She was safe. Her breaths still got trapped in her throat, a stuttering reminder that her alpha wasn't here to defend his claim.

She was safe. She smelt of Elliott. She was an alpha mate.

The route directed her to turn into an alleyway pried between two tall, cement buildings, and River hesitated, scanning the map for alternate entrances. Black bin bags were stacked against the walls, and tall figures crouched by them, whispering amongst themselves. It was dark, and it stank of urine, and the figures suddenly stopped talking, taking stock of her hesitating at one end.

Breathe. Step. Keep breathing. Keep stepping forward. River wanted to stride with purpose and confidence, but it was more of a wheezy shuffle. They watched her, licking their lips between mumbled words. She was sweating in places she didn't know she could sweat, and restraining shivers at the same time. Fear pulsed through her, faster and faster as she passed a pair of men. Dominant betas. Scarred and haggard. One bared his teeth at her, he didn't have many. The other was excited, chuckling softly at nothing in particular. Would they be able to smell her scent mark over the pee stink? Maybe they wouldn't realise until it was too late, for either them or her. River forced her gaze ahead, she was halfway. Breathe and step, that was all she had to do. Anything else was out of her control.

A rustle of plastic behind her sped her steps. Then a growling, gurgling laugh that echoed through the alley. Footsteps followed sluggishly. River hurried, so did the feet behind her.

Panting noises at her back brought bile to her throat and it took everything she had to keep her body facing forwards. Don't turn and look, he's probably touching himself in a puddle of his own piss. Don't give them any attention, because you don't want attention. The heavy breathing drew closer and River whimpered, squeezing her eyes shut for a moment as she braced for a grab.

A thwack and a yelp sounded from behind and River lurched out the other end of the alleyway without care for who had hurt themselves and how. Out of their line of sight, and out of the enclosed space, her sense of security rushed back into her. She had made it to the other side, and a neon sign at the back of a half-filled car park announced she had arrived before her phone could.

The gaggle of girls at the entrance of the bowling alley was the most beautiful sight River had ever laid her eyes on. She ran the home stretch like there was prize money waiting for her and they enveloped her in a group hug on arrival. They hurried inside the double doors into darkness to get started.