33. Sage
Sage
It is finally nest day.
We'd made the longer drive further up the mountain, so to speak, for our big day of shopping. I woke up early with a smile plastered on my face, ready to go, like it was Christmas.
We had a great morning, despite a certain someone who shall not be named, stinking up the SUV on the way here. It was not me. But it also was not not me. Coffee and breakfast burritos are permanently banned from pack outings, though. Scoffing, I shake my head. Stupid rule.
The air had a bit of a chill to it earlier this morning, which had also put an unnecessary pep in my step.
But now that we are over fifteen minutes into our second shopping stop of the day and still our omega hasn't found hardly anything, it's starting to make my skin itch and my primal pace under that itch. Something is wrong.
The Blushing Omega is a high-end omega-centric boutique that we'd stopped at first. We all thought we could pick up a decent amount of anything she could want there, since it's all quality and hand-picked by the owners.
Then anything else we could get here at Nesting Nook n' Co.
or The Omega Collective, which has a much wider selection.
Only, she didn't really get anything at the first store.
She grabbed a couple of pairs of fuzzy, soft socks and some fancy chocolates.
Not things we would need to build her a proper nest.
I can tell from the frown lines and looks passing back and forth that my pack brothers are feeling the same concern I am.
What makes it worse? She's almost entirely shut down the connection between us.
We each wear varying expressions, caught between wanting to rage and hold Opal to our chests, protecting her from whatever internal struggle is souring her experience.
Our jobs as her alphas, as her mates, are to protect.
Even from herself. And right now, I'm not confident we're doing our fucking jobs.
Leaning into Calder, I keep my voice low, asking for some space so I can try to talk to her without all of us crowding her and adding overwhelm.
I quickly glance at the open floors above, catching glimpses of rows of bedding, lighting, and care items through the glass railings on each level.
The store is massive and has everything an omega could ever possibly want; it's perfect for what we need.
The lighting is at a comfortable and warm level, and there isn't a single other scent in the air.
A massive air system and automatic mist of scent neutralizer keeps everything from getting overwhelming or overstimulating.
A lot of times, this is the type of destination trip before an omega's Heat hits, which can be during heightened emotions and general sensitivity to surroundings.
They took every precaution here, which is great.
I'm not sure what's going through her head right now.
But I am sure these little thoughtful touches during the shopping experience certainly don't hurt or make it worse, thankfully.
Making up the several feet between us, I glance back and note that my brothers are in fact giving us space, all intently watching. I plaster that smile back on and try to ground myself before offering her snuggles.
"Hey, pretty princess," I greet her. My arms wrap around her waist, chin settling on her shoulder.
She's tall for an omega, which I love, but she's still tiny compared to all of us.
Her hands clung to the damn cart that she wanted to push hard enough that her knuckles are white.
Fuck, I'm not sure in the slightest how to really handle this.
The urge to pull Ever or Calder over to her instead is on the tip of my tongue.
The slightest release of her tension keeps me wrapped around her, though.
"Sage," she whimpers in a quiet whisper making my knees want to buckle here in the damn pillowcase aisle.
Pulling her tight into my chest, I press kisses to her temples.
"Come on. Follow me?" I have an idea of where we can go that might help.
Skeptically, she turns, chin downturned.
Tucking that chin up between my thumb and finger, I catch the unshed tears and overwhelm in those green eyes. "Oh, honey. Come on. I've got you."
I guide her a few aisles over into a section of the store that houses small, model nests.
A terracotta and deep pink one with touches of green calls to me, so I follow the pull and take us to it.
Closing the folding door to give us a bit of privacy, her eyes light up for the first time since we've been here.
Fuck, it feels like pure sunshine watching the warm lights reflect off her watering eyes as she takes in the space.
Her mouth falls open a little too, and it feels like I've finally done something right.
"You like this one?" I whisper, offering a gentle, encouraging smile. Maybe we should have shown her these first as inspiration? A fresh wave of doubt comes crashing in, fast.
She looks around in wonder at the pink, earth, and green tones, the touches of wood, and the endless string lights.
"It's beautiful," she whispers in awe. "I don't think I actually knew what I was really looking for, until now.
I was hoping my primal would kind of guide me…
but we seem to be on different pages right now, anyway…
" she trails off, hand smoothing over a throw blanket.
"There's not a single thing in here that I don't love.
I couldn't have dreamt this up if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes. "
"Well, fuck, princess…let's just tell the salespeople to replicate this one!
" I say excitedly, hoping it could really be so easy.
I'd love to be able to walk us back out to the pack with a smile on her face, knowing I was able to help.
Calder and Ever are much better in situations like these when emotional intelligence and insight are needed.
"No—that's n-not…" she stutters, eyes closing. Her fists ball up a little at her sides, and I realize it's something much deeper than indecision. Sighing, she adds, "…I can't, Sage."
Nodding slowly, I try to give her a little space for two damn seconds without velcroing myself to her.
Her side of the bond is nearly closed off, which isn't helping my insecurities.
There really isn't much room outside of the mattress, so I kind of just plop down, patting the creamy bedding to my side.
"What's going on, princess?" I ask, tucking her closer to my side once she sits.
"I can't do this…" Her head ducks as she looks away. But I feel like gravity might suddenly be a little off balance. Because what does she mean she can't do this? That's what people say when they end relationships…she can't mean that. Right?