Killian nodded, sagging against Crush. “Okay.”
Crush hugged him again, rubbing his back. His omega was so strong and yet so delicate.
“Do they hurt?” Crush asked gently.
Killian smiled a little. Did Crush remember him asking that same question? “Some more than others, and some days are better than the rest.”
“Good thing I have a supply of lotions,” Crush said. “Use them whenever you want.”
“Thank you.” After a bit of lip-biting, Killian snuggled closer, tucking his nose against Crush’s skin. “If you don’t mind... I’d like to know how you got your scar. The one on your face.”
The scar in question twinged with phantom pain. “Yeah, alright,” Crush agreed with a sigh. “I owe you a few stories. But I’m not proud of this one. Actually, I’m really fucking ashamed of it.”
“Why?”
Crush thought briefly about giving Killian the edited version, the one he gave everyone else. But Killian had seen enough crap, done enough things he regretted, to understand in a way no one else would.
He sighed, nudging his lips against Killian’s ear so he wouldn’t have to look his omega in the eye. “I was young. Your age, probably younger. The age when all alphas are cocksure of themselves. Back then, my brothers and I were just starting out on the streets, learning to fight and growing into our skills. I had just discovered the thrill of saving someone. More than that, I had gotten a taste of accomplishing it all by myself, without any help.”
“Yeah,” Killian said quietly. “I know that feeling.”
“You do? You’re an only child with no siblings to compete against.”
“I had competition in that prison. Everyone wanted to be the best omega so they wouldn’t get punished.”
Crush rubbed his face. “Fuck. That’s right.”
“Enough about me, tell me more.”
“Back then, I was working part-time at a garage,” Crush said, the memories heavy and rounded like a river stone he’d rubbed too many times. “One day, a customer came in talking on the phone about a job; he said he had some omegas lined up ready to go.”
Killian stiffened. “What did you do?”
Another sigh. “There was this senior mechanic at the shop that I really wanted to impress. He didn’t take students, and I badly wanted to learn how to build my own car.”
“So you went to investigate that customer on your own.”
“Yeeeah.” Crush sighed. “I tailed him from a distance and eavesdropped on his call. That night, I waited near his meeting location so I could jump in and stall their operations. But.”
“Did you tell anyone where you were going?” Killian asked warily. Was he.... afraid? For Crush?
“No,” Crush admitted. “I didn’t want anyone telling me I was an idiot, or that things would go wrong, or that I shouldn’t go.”
“Oh no,” Killian whispered.
“They must’ve had a shape shifter with them; I was far enough that most people wouldn’t be able to pinpoint my location. But someone caught me.”
“No!” Killian clutched Crush’s hand.
“The shape shifter snuck up on me and hit me with a tranq dart. I didn’t hear them until it was too late. By the time I woke up, I was tied up. I could hear the captured omegas fighting to escape, but whatever they dosed me with, it made me so weak that I couldn’t free myself,” Crush muttered. “I still had my phone on me somehow. But then my idiot self wanted the bragging rights of escaping without help.” Killian hid his face. “So I didn’t call anyone. Just tried to get free. Which—you guessed it. Didn’t work. I wasn’t at all prepared for that situation. Didn’t have knives, didn’t have escape training. The ropes were too high up for me to use my claws.”
Killian dug his fingers into Crush’s side, his eyes wide. “What happened next?”
Crush shook his head bitterly. “They knocked me out again, easily. By the time I woke up, there was a wood pile burning next to my head, and I was still tied up. The omegas and their traffickers were gone.”
“Is that what gave you...” Killian was staring at Crush’s scar.
“Yeah. I was lucky to escape with my eye intact.” Crush grimaced. “It was bad. My nerves had been burned off; I couldn’t feel pain anymore. I rolled away from the fire, but it wasn’t enough—something exploded behind me. Next thing I knew, the entire warehouse was on fire. I was choking on smoke, twisting around like a pretzel trying to claw off the ropes around my ankles.
