5
Stark
The first thinghe registered was a thin ray of light beaming into the otherwise dark room.
The second thing he registered was a thick, throbbing pain in his head that made him want to instantly pass out again.
Stark groaned, but that only made the pain in his head worse. His entire body was sore and groggy and leaden. He felt like he’d been put through a blender, frozen and shattered into pieces.
Okay, maybe that was a bit much. But he did feel like complete shit.
He brought a hand to his forehead to block the sun from his eyes, but as he did so, his fingers brushed something.
Then with a pang of dread he realized it wasn’t something - it wassomeone.
A slow panic erupted inside of him. What the fuck had he done last night?
Stark ignored the throbbing pain in his brain and slowly turned his head.
His heart nearly stopped when he saw who was laying - naked - in bed next to him.
Kyle.
Stark suddenly felt nauseous. He had to get out of here before the weight of what he had done begun to sink in. Him and Kyle. Kyle and him. Naked. In bed. Drunk. Fuck.
He stumbled out of bed, trying not to collapse as a tsunami of dizziness came over him. He staggered to his feet and clutched the wall for balance. Another realization hit him and he groaned. Not only had he and Kyle likely had sex, but they had done so in their friends home.
Not just their friend’s home, Stark thought grimly. The fucking royal manor.
He was starting to wish he hadn’t woken up at all.
He collected his nerve and forced himself to look over at Kyle’s sleeping form. The omega’s face was calm and serene - the complete opposite of how Stark felt. A wave of disgust coursed through him. Whatreallyhappened last night? Stark’s heart pounded as he suddenly felt sick.
He hadn’t taken advantage of Kyle, had he?
Stark bit his lip hard enough to draw blood. He would never forgive himself if he had.
But somehow, even though he couldn’t remember much from last night, he had the feeling that wasn’t what happened. The expression on Kyle’s sleeping face was almost… happy.
Stark’s finger twitched. He had an urge to reach over and brush the loose messy strands of hair out of Kyle’s forehead. He almost indulged in it before he realized what he was doing. No, he couldn’t. Not now. Not when he’d already done something so horrible.
He gathered himself up, made sure his clothes were aligned properly, ran a hand through his hair, and gave one final solemn glance at Kyle before quietly running out the door.
* * *
His house felt emptierthan usual.
He paced around the hallway before realizing it wasn’t getting him anywhere, then he flopped down on the couch with a groan, running his hands over his face.
Justwhathad he done last night?
Stark wished he could remember anything, but it was all a blur of noise and warmth and booze.
He shut his eyes and focused harder. There had to besomethingbeyond the fuzzy memories.
Before the block of hazy memories began, he remembered talking to Chase and Scout. Kyle was there too, and he seemed agitated for some reason. Stark wondered if it still had to do with their argument over the phone the other day, but he couldn’t ask him about it in front of all those people.
He pinched the bridge of his nose.Think harder.
