Chapter II
I’m amazed at the clarity of which I can spot the small, glowing spec of Venus and even distinguish which phase it’s in. I’m a little bit jealous that I bought this telescope for Arius and not for myself. My much older model can barely focus on a fly on the wall.
“Can you see it?” Ari asks from his bedroom desk.
“Yeah. Wicked clear,” I nod, changing the angle of the scope to see what else I can find in the evening sky.
“That’s because I adjusted some of the internal lenses.
It took a while, and I was afraid of damaging it, but it turns out that even the slightest adjustment of a few millimeters makes all the difference in the focus.
Using a reticle, I recorded the measurements of a sunspot in the sun’s atmosphere for each adjustment I made. ”
“Uh-huh.” I’m trying to keep up with Ari’s cute nerdy rant as I continue ogling Venus.
No other Omegas are like him. It’s hard enough to find other Alphas who are into astronomy as much as we are. He’s truly one of a kind.
“I analyzed each measurement until I found the most accurate one.”
“You’re a genius, Ari.”
“I try to tell ‘em.”
He smiles at me and I turn away from the scope to smile back, holding onto his dark-blue gaze.
Man, I’m going to miss him. I may be seen as one of the strongest Alphas in my class, but I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t shed a tear or two at night, thinking about how Ari is leaving.
We’ve been inseparable since we first met at a block party when we were two.
His family had just moved into the neighborhood. I’d crowned myself king of the sandbox, challenging any other toddler who approached, until Ari’s mother had plopped him down beside me.
Since he’s an Omega, he’d been naturally submissive, letting me play with the sand toys I wanted.
Not being fussy and competitive like the Alpha toddlers.
He just sat and stared up at me with big doe eyes and messy light-brown hair.
Our parents became close friends as well, giving us the opportunity of countless play dates.
“What’s wrong?” he asks, taking in my drop in mood.
I lean away from the telescope with a sigh, wondering where to begin without coming off as emotional. Alphas are supposed to be tough.
“It just sucks. I wish you were an Alpha so they wouldn’t send you away,” I grumble, collapsing on his bed. The Comet XI logo is sprawled out beneath me on the covers. The “C” creates a violet whirlpool galaxy surrounding the rest of the letters.
Arius rolls his eyes. Am I being too dramatic? He’s my best friend; I should be able to keep him!
“We've been over this, Knox. First of all, I’m proud to be an Omega, it’s the rest of the world you should wish was different.
Second, I won’t be gone forever. As soon as I finish what’s required, I’m booking it out of there and meeting you at our spot.
You have the easy part. All you have to do is wait for me to get back and then we’ll be that much closer to getting our feet in the door of Comet XI. ”
He makes it sound so simple. He thinks I have it easy? I’ll be alone for years. Chet is the second closest friend I have, but he –and I quote– doesn’t give a rat's ass about stars and rockets and shit. It’s bad enough he thinks poorly of Ari.
Chet comes from a traditional family and thinks Arius is a sorry excuse of an Omega with the way I let him talk to me.
He couldn’t be more wrong, but if I were to show Chet and the others just how smart and strong Ari is, not as an Omega, but as a person, they’d probably accuse him of being a witch and burn him at the stake.
Fools. All of them.
I must take too long to respond to him because his confident expression from moments ago falters.
“You will wait for me, won’t you?”
My chest burns at his tone, urging me to comfort him. I sit up on my elbows to make sure he sees the stern look of sincerity on my face.
“I won’t step foot inside Comet XI if you’re not right beside me, Ari.”
The worry in his brows softens a little as his mouth lifts into a grin, drawing my eyes to his perfect lips. My heart adores this Omega with fervent passion, but my brain knows that I have to let him go. I’m only feeling possessive due to my natural instincts as an Alpha.
He’ll come back to me. All I need to do is wait.
Noise from the open window has us hustling to stand on either side of the telescope and peering out at the street below.
“Hey, Knox!” Chet calls up. “When you’re done making out with your Omega come take a look at Uranus!
” He’s standing on the street in front of Ari’s house along with a small posse of Alphas and Betas from school.
One of them is turned around and bent over, flashing his ass toward us.
One of the Betas is also turned around rubbing his own hands on his back to mimic a make out session.
“Not cool, guys,” I scold them. “If the old lady next door catches you doing that, she’ll clutch her pearls and then strangle you with them.”
The herd of them giggles.
“Relax, we’re just teasing. You guys coming to the park with us or what?” Chet asks, tossing a baseball between his hands.
“Yeah. We’ll be down in a sec.”
I'll admit, I did find it a little bit funny, but I know Ari didn’t. He doesn’t tolerate objectifying Omegas, even if it’s just a joke.
I didn’t always understand that and told him to lighten up once because I pridefully like that everyone thinks I’m making out with an Omega in my free time.
That was a mistake. Ari made me watch a video of an Omega giving birth as punishment, just to emphasize a fraction of what their bodies already have to endure without the world degrading them.
Besides, as the leader of the group, it’s my job to be the mature one and guide the others. Ari and I throw on baseball caps, and I grab a hoodie before we head downstairs. It’s more for him than for me. Since he’s much smaller, I know if we’re outside late, he’ll get cold.
I lead the way to the local park and begin my mature Alpha lecture about how they’ll all be single and never find their mates if they continue to act like duds in the presence of an Omega.
“Arius barely counts as an Omega,” Ricky, a freckle-faced Alpha, mumbles under his breath, and a few of the others snicker at his remark.
Stopping in my tracks, I spin around, grab him by his collar, and pull him forward until he cowers in submission.
“You apologize right now, or else,” I threaten through gritted teeth. Everyone hushes.
“I’m sorry!”
“Not to me, you idiot, to Ari.”
“I’m sorry, Arius, I didn’t mean it! It was just a joke! Tell him to put me down!”
Ricky whimpers the last words. I hadn’t even realized his feet barely graze the ground. I’ve always been big, but as puberty descends on me further, I’ve been getting strong too. Like, real Alpha strong with muscles and shit.
My eyes drift, locking onto Ari’s blank stare. I can’t quite read his expression, but I hope I’m not scaring him.
“Knox, c’mon man put him down,” Chet speaks up. “He apologized. It was just a joke.”
Even he sounds slightly fearful, which is a first. My eyes don’t leave Ari though. His big, blue eyes. His windswept wavy hair. The blush-pink tip of his nose. After a second, he seems to understand that I’m waiting for him to decide what happens next. He tucks a curl behind his ear.
“I f-forgive you,” he says to Ricky before his eyes glance back to me cautiously. “Please put him down, Knox.” His voice is a gentle whisper that soothes my soul like ice cream on a hot day.
But then, he does something he’s never done before.
With a simple tilt of his head, Arius bares his neck to me.
His scent reaches my nose, travelling through my veins until my toes and fingers tingle from the smell.
Something about the smooth skin revealed beneath his jaw, and the way he averts his eyes submissively, sends a shockwave of new sensations through my body.
I drop Ricky immediately. He hits the ground with a thud and a pathetic whine. My gaze is still on Arius.
Gone is my temper, replaced with concern and guilt from scaring everyone. I don’t want to be scary. I just can’t stand anyone messing with Ari. It’s like a joke that has gone on too long, and I’m sick of it. I just want to protect him.
The Comet XI Museum of Science has me and Arius wide eyed and bushy tailed. Our moms can’t keep up with us as we zip through the exhibits. We’ve been here countless times, but it never fails to excite us.
Today, however, we aren’t just here for funsies. We’re packed and leaving for BOW camp after we check in with our tickets.
I'm still riddled with joy that Ari’s parents agreed to let him go, however reluctant they were at first. In less than an hour, a shuttle will pick up our group from the museum and take us four hours South where we’ll be staying on the campus of Comet XI University for the next six weeks of summer.
As we journey through the museum toward the designated check-in, Arius and I challenge each other's knowledge and test our memory with trivia questions.
“Define a planetary conjunction!” I call out to him while fidgeting with an interactive space rover on a track. It has a knob that makes it travel around the plastic display of Mars’ surface.
Without hesitation, Arius responds from another display across from me, “When two planets appear close to one another in the night sky!”
“Correct. Give me a hard one,” I challenge, moving on to fidget with a plushie of Jupiter.
“Hmm. During which season can you see the Great Hercules Cluster?”
“Ahh. Let’s see…summer?”
“Ding, ding, ding! You got it.”
“That’s a good one. How’d you come up with that?”
“I don’t know. Hercules. He’s the god of strength. It reminds me of you.” He pokes my side, and I feel my chest thud with warmth as I smile down at him. The older I get, the more his praise as an Omega seems to affect me, feeding my ego and making me happy.
“Hello boys, can I help you?”
An Alpha lady behind a counter asks as we walk up. Behind her are pictures of previous camp BOW kids wearing real space suits, using telescopes, and floating in a zero-gravity simulator. Awesome!
“Hi. We have tickets and some other paperwork for BOW camp,” I explain as we pile all the papers in front of her. Our mothers catch up to us, deep in their own conversation.
“Oh, of course,” the lady begins, expression tainted with confusion. She accepts my paperwork but pushes Ari’s toward him.
“I’m sorry dear, but this retreat is just for Alphas and Betas.”
I freeze and so does Ari.
Did I hear that right? Just for Alphas and Betas?
My chest stings as the weight of those words crush us both. Rage clouds my vision at the sight of Ari’s broken expression. I have to force myself to tear my gaze away from him and back to the lady.
“It doesn’t say anything about that in the pamphlet,” I argue.
“Well, no, but it’s implied. He can’t go.” Her words are spoken softly in a polite tone and yet they’re the worst, most cruelest thing I’ve ever heard.
“Can’t we just say he’s with me?” I beg, “Please, we’ve been planning this for ages, and we already bought the tickets!”
Ari is speechless, clutching his ticket in his hands with defeat. I can hardly look at him. I can’t stand such a crushed look on his face. It makes me feel enraged down to my core.
“I’m sorry, but it doesn’t work that way. We can get him a full refund for the confusion.”
“Please! There has to be some way he can come with. He passed the placement exam! This isn’t fair!
” My fists slam the counter. I’m aware that the tantrum brewing isn’t very manly and mature of me.
She’s an Alpha too, so I probably look more pathetic than intimidating, but I don’t care.
I bare my teeth at her anyway until Mom places a firm hand on my shoulder.
“Knox, sweetie, you need to calm down.”
“She won’t let him go, Mom!”
“It’s not her fault, Knox. This type of thing just isn’t meant for Omegas, but you know what? You’ll be able to finally make some Alpha friends who share your interest!”
I can’t believe her. I don’t want other friends, I want Ari! I turn back to the receptionist hoping she can see my desperation. She looks back pitifully, providing no favorable solution.
“Even if I could let him in, I’m afraid most of the activities and gear wouldn’t be suitable for someone his size. He’s too small. You wouldn’t want your friend to get hurt, would you?”
I know she’s just trying to reign in my temper, but she has a point.
Arius wouldn’t fit the space suits made for Alphas, and he’d be too weak physically for some of the activities judging by the pictures along the back wall.
But it still doesn’t make me want him to stay behind.
It makes me determined to protect him through it all.
Finally, I force myself to look at him.
He’s crying silently. Holding back his sobs as his mom coos reassurances in his ear. The shuttle leaves in thirty minutes.
“I guess we’re not going then,” I drop my shoulders, defeated. He looks at me then. Snapping his head up with eyes so watery they shine like jewels.
“No, you should still go, Knox,” his broken words pain my ears.
“But– “
“Let’s face it! This is your dream, not ours. I was just tagging along while I still could. Omegas don’t have dreams.”
I’m already shaking my head as he squeaks the words out and wipes his eyes on his sleeve. I feel nauseous. I’m not confident enough to go alone. The only thing that made this easy was the comforting knowledge that Arius would be by my side through it all.
“I don’t want to go alone,” I complain. “This is our last time together!”
“Stop saying that! I’ll wait for you just like you’re going to wait for me.”
“Ari… “
“Go for us,” he reaches for my hand, squeezing it in his smaller one. “Please, Knox. And then, you can tell me all about it when you get back.”
Ari’s words are final. I know I’ll see him again. It’s only six weeks. I just…wish I didn’t have to wait.