"I just wish that we knew who did it," she finally said softly. "I don't think that would make it any better, but..."
"It would be closure of some kind." James nodded, pressing his cheek against the top of her head. His hand stroked soothingly up and down her back, and Camelia found herself relaxing into his grip despite the seriousness of the situation.
"That feels nice," she mumbled. Her eyes were growing heavy again, despite the fact that she had a pile of homework that still needed to be done and it was still only barely early evening, despite the dark sky outside.
James hummed, the sound vibrating against her cheek as his hand slid up into her hair. "Relax, sweetheart," he said softly. "We can deal with things later. Just let me hold you."
Camelia couldn't find it in herself to argue with the surprisingly tender offer from James, and she snuggled deeper into his arms, sighing. "Okay."
Chapter twelve
Evan
Camelia's lamp was on when Evan got back from the gym late that night. The meeting with the Dean had worked him up more than he had expected, and he'd needed to burn off some energy after taking Camelia back home that afternoon and finishing his classes for the day.
He stripped his shirt off as he walked up the stairs, wiping sweat off the back of his neck as he stepped onto the landing, and his eyes narrowed a little when he saw James' bedroom door, closed and dark.
"Camelia? You awake, baby?" Evan paused at the bathroom door, cocking his head to the side.
Her response only took a moment. "Yeah. You gonna come in?"
Evan's lips twitched a little, and he chuckled quietly to himself. "Gonna shower first, then I'll come see you."
"Okay."
Her acquiescence made Evan's stomach clench with warm emotion, and he turned the water as hot as it would go in the bathroom. He didn't bother to turn the light on, letting the dark room fill with steam as he stripped out of his sweaty workout clothes and stepped under the spray. His muscles trembled a little as he cleaned himself – he had pushed himself harder than usual on the weights that night, trying to keep his thoughts quiet – and by the time he stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around his waist, exhaustion was starting to weigh on him.
He stopped by his room and pulled on a pair of black sweat pants, then padded over to Camelia's room, running a hand through his wet hair as he walked through the open door.
The sight inside made a smile tug at his lips. Camelia was laying in the middle of her bed on her back with her phone in her right hand, and James was wrapped fully around her on her left side, dead asleep. His blonde hair was mussed, expression lax, and Camelia was tracing her left hand over his arm, thrown possessively over her hips as he held her close in his sleep.
Camelia smiled, looking up at Evan over her phone. "Hey. You're home late." Her eyes flicked down Evan's bare chest, just for a second, before returning to his face. She jerked her head a little at the empty space beside her. "Get the light and come here."
Evan didn't argue, flicking the overhead light off before crossing the room and crawling onto the bed. It was a tight fit, the space between Camelia and the wall on her free side, but the sigh that she let out as Evan settled into place made it worth it. He dropped a kiss to the top of her head as he propped his head up, smiling at James as he shifted a little in his sleep. "How long has he been in here?"
Camelia's fingers traced a little circle on James' arm, and she let out a sigh as Evan pressed a little closer to her, their legs twining together as he got more comfortable. "A few hours. Wedozed off, but I didn't want to bother him when I woke up. He doesn't seem like he sleeps very well."
Evan didn't comment on her astute observation, instead stroking his hand down the top of her hip and thigh, feeling the way she trembled a little under his touch. "Probably best, baby."
Camelia nodded, looking at him from under her eyelashes. "Where did you go tonight?"
"The gym. Needed to get out of my head a little." Evan pressed his lips together, his cock twitching when Camelia shifted against him a little, her legs parting for his hand as he stroked his fingers along her inner thigh. "How are you doing? After everything today. It was a lot."
Camelia sighed, leaning her head against Evan's shoulder. "Yeah, that's about it. I'm okay, I think. Sleeping helped." She waved her phone around a little. "My dad told me about an Omega rights rally that's happening in town next week. I want to go."
Evan raised an eyebrow. "Okay, we'll make it happen." He couldn't stop the surprise that leaked into his voice, but he didn't ask the question that he wanted to.
Camelia knew, anyway. She sighed again, closing her eyes. "I can't run from my status, no matter how much I want to sometimes. So I need to do something about it. It isn't right, the way that things are being decided about and for Omegas. Without our permission, without our input. We're submissive, not slaves." Her voice heated a little as she finished speaking, and she furrowed her brow as she opened her eyes again. "I want to know what I can do to help. Dad said he'd poke around a little bit about it, see if there's any opportunities for me."
Evan nodded. "I think that's a great idea. James and I will be with you every step of the way, baby."
A light blush rose in Camelia's cheeks, and she bit her lower lip as she looked up at him. "You..." She swallowed. "Thank you."
Evan nodded, yawning as he snuggled a little closer to her. He couldn't stop touching her, the skin of her thighs so fucking soft where her house shorts exposed her legs, but not even his cock twitching at the way she felt could keep him awake. "Of course, baby."
Camelia shifted, turning a little so that she was on her side and her back was pressed firmly against Evan's chest. "Did you talk to your parents about your little threat with the Dean today?"
Her voice was a little snarky, and Evan huffed out a chuckle as she threw her phone towards the end of the bed. It bounced against the fabric and then fell on the floor, and Evan threw an arm over both her and James, holding them close. "I called my dad. He agreed that something needs to be done, if the Dean isn't willing to make any necessary changes."
