Chapter 11
The Night of the Apparition was held on the second Saturday of Samhain. The week leading up to it was always buzzing with excitement as people in the city anticipated the opening of the carnival.
Every year, the event seemed to grow bigger and bigger, and this year was no different.
Sky and Elm drifted through the crowd as soon as they made it to the end of the long entrance line.
Lights flashed, and electronic gaming stations dinged and played familiar music.
The smell of salty popcorn was overtaken by the sweetness of caramel as they passed a candy apple station, one of many they’d find, no doubt.
“I can’t believe you broke tradition for mediocre dick,” Elm grumbled at his side, crossing his arms with a huff. He was dressed in a vibrant blue dragon adult onesie, complete with a tail that dragged in the dirt behind him, and a hood that doubled as a plush head with horns.
The dress code for the carnival for the two of them had been set since they were six.
The theme was always ridiculous onesie costumes, the more outlandish or eye-catching the better.
This night wasn’t about looking hot or attracting a crush, it was usually about two best friends goofing off, eating too much junk food, and going on as many rides as possible.
That hadn’t changed, even though they were both in their early twenties now.
Except…
“It’s an important date,” Sky said. “I don’t want to scare him off. And what do you mean? Mediocre? Rude.”
He’d ditched their fun antics and gone with black jeans, a white t-shirt, and a brown leather jacket.
He wanted to show Kenta he was serious about them.
Was hopeful the alpha would take one look at him and lose his mind in a good way.
Attraction was everything at the beginning of a relationship, and Sky was determined to do everything in his power to present himself as the perfect match.
Some alphas preferred docile and sweet, others liked edgy and wild. Sky had yet to figure out just what Kenta was after, but he didn’t want to deviate too far from his own style or sense of self. He wanted to impress him, sure, but not at the risk of losing who he was.
Bullshit, his thoughts rebelled. If that were true, you wouldn’t be trying to set yourself up with a soft and caring alpha in the first place.
Soft and caring were things he needed.
Even if he was still haunted by dreams of masked men and Kian whispering filthy promises in his ear while he took him with a toy.
“Come on, like it can be anything but just all right.” Elm waved him off, and it was hard to tell if he was being an asshole because he was actually hurt by Sky’s outfit choice, or if he was simply taking a joke too far. “I got a call from my brother this morning, by the way.”
“Oh?” Sky turned toward one of the vendors selling gummy candies shaped like knives and pretended to be interested in them.
“He had some interesting things to say.”
“Like what?”
“Like how apparently he spent your heat with you last week.” Elm’s following silence was enough to rack up the tension, and Sky gave in and turned back to him, wincing when he saw the glare.
“I get that’s, like, super private and all, but really?
You didn’t tell me you’d finally slept with Kian?
Kian? The guy you’ve been hot for our whole lives? ”
“Don’t be gross,” Sky said, trying to lighten the mood. “I looked up to him when we were younger. It’s not the same.”
“As having a boner every time he enters a room?” Elm shrugged. “Semantics. You’ve been obsessed with him for years. I can’t believe you didn’t tell me. Hell, what are you even doing here?”
“What do you mean?” Sky feigned innocence and started walking again.
“Why are you about to go on a date with another alpha?” Elm’s expression turned pensive. “It’s not because of me, right?”
“You’ve always told me Kian wasn’t a good guy.”
“Yeah, but…” He grabbed onto the sleeve of his jacket, forcing Sky to stop. “My brother takes care of his own. Is he arguably a terrible person on a moral scale level? Yes. I’ve seen him hurt someone for cutting him off on the freeway. But he’s good to me and our parents.”
Sky tipped his head. “Did you know he’d found his birth mom?”
“She found him,” Elm corrected. “And yeah, I knew. I was sworn to secrecy. That’s why I never told you.”
“Did you know he wasn’t at the Academy this whole time?”
“No, that came as a huge surprise. Mom and Dad are livid. They’re refusing to even speak to him at the moment.”
Elm didn’t owe Sky an explanation. Kian’s business was none of his.
“What are you trying to say, Elm?” Sky asked, growing impatient, mostly with himself. He hated the way his heart leapt at just the mention of Kian’s name. Hated that a part of him secretly wished the alpha was here.
So he could what? Stop him from dating Kenta?
How pathetic.
“Why’d you bring this up?” Sky shoved his hands into his pockets.
“Kian asked about you, and it sounded different. Look, I don’t know how much he told you about his birth mom, or what he was doing on Synastry all these years, but as your best friend, I just wanted to tell you I’ll support you no matter what decision you make.”
Sky frowned. “Decision?” He shook his head. “Nothing like that is going on. It was a one-time thing. He happened to be there when my heat surprised me, that’s all.”
“Are you sure?” Elm dug the toe of his shoe into the dirt.
“Don’t take this the wrong way, but ever since we were kids, you’ve always dreamed of the picture-perfect family.
Marriage, kids, white picket fence, a fucking dog.
My brother hates children, thinks weddings are a waste of money, and currently lives downtown over a host club.
If he ever got a pet, he’d probably kill it within a week, either on purpose or because he forgot to feed it.
He doesn’t fit your ideal, Sky, no matter how much you ‘look up to him’. ”
“I know that. You’ve only been saying as much since we were sixteen.
” The thing was, he understood where Elm was coming from.
No one on this planet knew Sky better than him.
They shared everything, from their aspirations, goals, and ideal mate.
“If you came to me tomorrow and told me you’d fallen for a guy like Kenta, I’d pull you to the side and question you the same way you’re questioning me right now. I get it.”
Elm grimaced at the mention of Kenta. “Ew, gross. Dude is so basic. Are we sure he’s an alpha and not a beta in disguise?”
“Dude.” Sky hit his shoulder hard enough to jostle him but not leave any lasting discomfort. “That’s so sexist.”
“I’m a beta, I can say it.”
“I don’t think that’s how it works.”
“Why not? You can talk shit about omegas.”
“When have I ever said anything negative about omegas?”
“Touché.” Elm stuck out his tongue. “I just—”
“I said I get it,” he cut him off, slinging an arm around him and tugging him back into the flow of traffic. They were going to be late. “You won’t hate me if I ever get with your brother, but you think I’d be making an epic mistake. For the record, I wholeheartedly agree.”
“You do?”
“Yeah. You’re right. I’m not cut out for an edgier lifestyle. I like my men the same way I like my ice cream.”
“Vanilla.” Elm rolled his eyes. “I’ll never get over how that’s your favorite flavor. Out of all the flavors in all of the universe, vanilla is your go-to? Really?”
“It’s comforting and dependable.”
“Good fucking Light. How are you not still a virgin?”
“Who are we talking about?” Kenta appeared from behind a pumpkin carving stall, the grin on his face clueing them into the fact that he must have picked up on at least the last part of their conversation. He glanced at them both, but his gaze oddly lingered on Elm a bit longer.
Just as Sky was starting to worry he was into his friend instead, Kenta burst out laughing.
“What are you wearing?” he asked, picking at one of the horns on top of Elm’s head.
“What, never seen a costume before?” Elm snapped.
“It’s cute.”
“Fuck off.”
Kenta held up both hands in a sign of surrender and finally rested his eyes on Sky. “Hey.”
“Hey.”
Cue the awkward silence.
“For the love of…” Elm rolled his eyes again and then shoved Sky at Kenta, stepping back when the alpha caught him. “You two have fun.”
“Where are you going?” Sky asked, but he was already walking away with sure steps.
Elm lifted an arm and waved, but he didn’t turn back to them, disappearing among the crowd within seconds.
“I don’t think he likes me very much,” Kenta said, helping Sky to steady himself on his own feet before letting him go.
“You did just make fun of his costume.”
“I like it,” he disagreed. “But I like what you’re wearing more.”
“Thanks.” Sky allowed his gaze to drag down the alpha’s body, taking in the blue jeans and blue shirt under a tan bomber jacket. “You look nice too.”
“What every guy wants to hear,” he joked. “Not even going to give me handsome? Just nice?”
Sky chuckled. “You look really nice.”
“I’ll take it.” Kenta clapped his hands together and then motioned over his shoulder. “I was thinking we could start with corn dogs and work our way up to bobbing for apples.”
“Apples, huh?” Had the alpha said that last part with a hint of innuendo, or was Sky losing his mind? Had to be that. Talking about Kian with Elm had put his thoughts back in the gutter. He needed to focus on the man in front of him. “Lead the way.”
* * *
It turned out dating was…dull.
An hour in, Sky couldn’t name a single thing they’d done he wouldn’t have otherwise done with Elm if this had been any other Night of the Apparition.
He supposed it was meant to be the company that made it different, turned it exciting, but while Kenta was easy to get along with, there weren’t any fireworks.
Not even a spark.