I feel my cheeks flush, and I bring my hands to my face to hide. I cannot believe she just out and said that. All the slick and other bodily fluids; not stuff I like to think about. Once the second-hand embarrassment fades in me, I ask, “So, do you think they wrote you a card?”
“Oh, I know they did.”
“And you’re going to accept?”
Just based on the look she sends my way, I know her answer, and though I’m happy for my friend, I’m also quite sad. This means everything is going to change. I knew it would happen eventually, but I can’t say I was ready for it to happen so soon.
“I am.” Casey grins ear to ear. “Things are… a little different with them, but I think it’ll be exciting.”
“Different how?”
“They already have an omega.” I open my mouth to question her about that—I’ve heard of packs having multiple omegas, but they’re very rare—and she hurriedly adds, “A male omega. They came looking for a female omega to fit in their pack.”
Oh. That’s… that’s definitely an interesting dynamic, but hey, if she’s up for it, then I’m behind her. I’m going to be sad to see her go, but if that’s what she wants, then she should have her happiness.
“I’m happy for you,” I eventually say.
“I wish your night went better.” She gives me a soft frown, and then she sits up. “Come on, it’s almost time for breakfast. We should get ready and head downstairs.”
Frankly, I’m ready to roll over and go back to bed, but I suppose she’s right. Might as well start this day and watch every other omega here get a Valentine’s card with an offer. Maybe even multiple. There were plenty more alphas there last nightthan there were us, so odds are some omegas had more than one pack sniffing around them.
I manage to get myself up, and soon enough we’re both dressed and walking side by side down the hall, to the main stairwell. We make it to the dining hall, and we find we aren’t the only ones there. There’s no set time for breakfast; N.O.A. now has a chef. Breakfast is a buffet served between six and eight in the morning.
I don’t think I’ve ever seen this many omegas up this early. No one, I notice, has gone for the food. They all stand around, chatting, grinning, laughing—too excited about those cards to eat anything.
“Wow,” Casey mutters beside me. “Guess I’m not the only one who can’t wait to get her offer.”
N.O.A. is going to feel so empty once everyone leaves. I wonder if I’ll ever see Casey again, or if she’ll forget all about me once she moves in with her pack. The thought is sad enough to make me want to freeze time.
The chatter quiets down the moment Delilah strolls into the dining hall, holding a stack of small cards in her hands. She surveys the room, and because she stands taller than the rest, it’s easy to see her regardless of where we are in the room.
“I assume you’re all awake so early because you’re eager to see if you got any cards from the alphas you met last night. Some of you have multiple, so you’ll need to sit down and decide who you’d like to get to know more. Of course, if you changed your mind and don’t want to pursue any of the alphas, that’s more than fine, too. When I call your name, come get your card.”
Names are called after that. Other than those who received multiple cards from different alpha packs, they’re in no particular order. Casey gets hers toward the middle of the name-calling, and she practically bounces on her way to Delilah.
Some of the others disappear the moment they get their cards, but others simply couldn’t wait to read them. They had to open them right here and now, their eyes scanning the cards as quickly as humanly possible. Casey being one of them.
I tune Delilah out and lean closer to my friend, reading the card along with her. As my eyes scan the small pink card, a heaviness settles upon my shoulders.
I really don’t want to say goodbye to her. I don’t want things to change. But time is unrelenting, and it refuses to take my wants and needs into consideration. Based on the huge smile that grows on Casey’s face as she reads the letter, I can tell she’s ready to move on from this place.
Of course I’m happy for her. I’m not that selfish. But two things can be true at the same time. I can be happy for my friend and her future pack while also being sad for myself. Change is scary, and anyone who says it isn’t is a liar.
Once she finishes reading it, she inhales sharply and holds the card against her chest, grinning from ear to ear. “Oh, man. I feel… so weird. A good weird, but weird.” She turns to me. “I think I’m giddy, Dulcie.”
I give her a soft smile. “I think you are.”
My friend opens her mouth to say something more, but right then Delilah walks over to us and hands me a card. “For you,” she says.
“For… me?” My heart pounds in my chest. I wasn’t expecting a card from anyone. I didn’t talk to a single alpha last night. For all intents and purposes, last night was a complete bust for me.
“I have it on good authority that your scent match would like another chance,” she tells me, and beside us, Casey sucks in another hard breath—this time, in shock over the sudden turn of events. “For what it’s worth, he and his pack seemed nice. I think he was as shocked at seeing his scent match as you were.”
I’m clammy, just like that. I stand there, not saying a word, mostly because I’m confused.
“Of course, like I said, the decision is ultimately up to you. If you’d rather not see him or meet his pack, you don’t have to,” she tells me with a sagely nod. “But when it comes to scent matches, sometimes it’s good to give things another go.” With one final acknowledgement, she leaves Casey and me to discuss what I should do.
Casey has her own thoughts on the subject, and she voices those thoughts instantly: “What are you waiting for? Open it.”
